The Friends Spin-Off, Joey, Made Its Streaming Debut

Is it time for a Joey-naissance? After years of Friends’ streaming success, the spin-off starring Matt LeBlanc is getting a chance to share in the spotlight. Fans can stream the sitcom for the first time after the first two episodes were added to the Friends YouTube channel on March 11.

Joey Is Back

The final episode of Friends aired on May 6, 2004, but one cast member decided not to say goodbye. LeBlanc returned to star in Joey, a show that saw the sandwich-loving actor move to Hollywood to further his career. His adventures included other members of the Tribbiani family, including his sister Gina (Drea de Matteo) and his nephew Michael (Paulo Costanzo). Friends guest stars also popped in, from Joey Tribbiani Sr. (Robert Costanzo) to Eddie (Adam Goldberg), the nightmare roommate.

The Friends YouTube channel currently has two full episodes of Joey: the pilot and Season 1, Episode 2, “Joey and the Student.” The first sees him deal with a work setback as his nephew Michael tries to tell his mom he’d like to live with Joey, and the second follows as Joey tries to pass on his tricks for picking up women while dealing with an irritated neighbor. It’s unclear if additional episodes will be added.

Reexamining Joey

Sadly, Joey has never been known for having the same magic as Friends. Despite the popularity of its lead actor, the sitcom couldn’t sustain its initially high ratings. It ran for just two seasons and was canceled on May 15, 2006. Months later, in a December interview with The Age, Friends co-creator Kevin S. Bright said the title character was taken in the wrong direction, and he pointed to NBC execs, the studio, and other producers as the ones responsible for Joey’s untimely demise.

“On Friends Joey was a womaniser but we enjoyed his exploits. He was a solid friend, a guy you knew you could count on,” he said. “Joey was deconstructed to be a guy who couldn’t get a job, couldn’t ask a girl out. He became a pathetic, mopey character. I felt he was moving in the wrong direction, but I was not heard.”

LeBlanc had a similar take in May 2015. “In Friends Joey was always glass is half full,” he told Radio Times, per the UK’s Metro. “In Joey he was glass half empty. And that was sad.”

He called the show “doomed from the start,” noting that he shared Friends episodes with his co-stars, but it was “all [him]” in Joey. “It was a lot of responsibility,” he added. “The pressure was so much, I remember feeling like an elephant had sat on my head.”

LeBlanc further reflected on the spin-off in June 2018 and had a positive takeaway, though he still didn’t think Joey got “the care it deserved.”

“I thought it was a good show, I really did,” he told The Hollywood Reporter. “Was it Friends? No, it wasn’t — nothing would have been. But I was proud of it.”