Out of the six main characters in Friends, only two of them are related, but could it be possible that Rachel (Jennifer Aniston) and Chandler (Matthew Perry) are also related? The 1990s saw the rise of many sitcoms that went on to become classics, and one that continues to be popular with viewers and keeps its spot as one of the best TV shows ever is Friends. Created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, Friends aired from 1994 to 2004, and its arrival in the world of streaming has introduced the show to younger generations while also allowing fans to rewatch it, thus making way for new questions and theories about the characters and their stories.

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Friends took viewers to New York City to follow a group of six young adults as they did their best every day to juggle their social, personal, and professional lives while also dealing with everything adulthood constantly threw at them, all of this with a big dose of humor. Over the course of 10 seasons, the audience got to know Monica, Chandler, Joey, Phoebe, Rachel, and Ross quite well, including their families and bits of their backstories, but some of those details have raised a couple of questions and made way for different theories, such as one about the possibility of Rachel and Chandler being secretly related.

A theory posted on Reddit explains a possible link between Chandler and Rachel that would mean they are related. The author points out that in Friends season 5 episode in Las Vegas, when Rachel sees how Ross painted her face, she says she looks like her great aunt Muriel. Later, in Friends season 8, it’s revealed that Chandler’s middle name is “Muriel”, which he claims is a family name. The author explains that, while there are no connections between the Greens (Rachel’s family) and the Bings (Chandler’s family), both families were in proximity and “have amassed great wealth”, so there could be a hidden connection between them – so, if Muriel is a family name and Rachel had a great aunt Muriel, Rachel and Chandler’s relation could be cousins.

Surely, there are a couple of details pointed out by the author of the theory that can either support it – such as Rachel’s great aunt Muriel being a relative she didn’t know personally or connected through marriage, and Chandler being incredibly private about any information about his family – or debunk it, such as Rachel being a big fan of Chandler’s mom and her novels, and having met her personally, they surely would have been aware if there was some family relation between them.

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While the theory is fun and points out a coincidence between Rachel and Chandler, it’s unlikely they are related, but if they were, that would change some dynamics in Friends, as well as some moments in the series. First off, Rachel and Chandler kissed on three different occasions (that the audience knows of, at least): in a flashback to their college days, off-screen while he was drunk at Joey’s birthday party, and after Rachel returned from Greece, in a desperate attempt to keep his and Monica’s relationship secret. In addition to that, in the episode “The One With The Flashback”, Rachel fantasized about going back to the bar and having sex with Chandler – if Rachel and Chandler were related, all these moments would be too weird and gross. Rachel and Chandler being cousins would also create another connection between Monica, Rachel, Ross, and Chandler, as Chandler would not only be Emma’s uncle through his marriage to Monica but also a distant relative of hers, and Rachel and Monica would also be related aside from Rachel getting together with Monica’s brother.