The more I think about the Phoebe and Joey theory, the more it feels like Friends' best-kept secret

The NBC sitcom Friends became a cultural phenomenon during its 10-season run from 1994 to 2004. Set in Manhattan, the series centered on the lives of six friends - Rachel Green (Jennifer Aniston), Monica Geller (Courteney Cox), Phoebe Buffay (Lisa Kudrow), Joey Tribbiani (Matt LeBlanc), Chandler Bing (Matthew Perry), and Ross Geller (David Schwimmer).

Ross and Rachel were long considered to be the endgame despite their will-they-won't-they dynamic. Chandler and Monica's relationship was a pleasant surprise to fans and went on to become the emotional hook during the second half of the show's run. It left many fans, including me, wondering about a potential romance between Joey and Phoebe.

It's fair to say that Joey and Phoebe were the most eccentric ones in the group and understood each other in a way others didn't. Due to their special bond and crackling chemistry, I often wondered why they didn't end up together. Matt once revealed that he and Lisa pitched the idea about their characters hooking up in secret, but the show's creators, David Crane and Marta Kauffman, weren't sold on the idea.

Disclaimer: This article contains the writer's personal opinion.

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Why did Joey and Phoebe not get together in Friends?

Matt told People Magazine that both he and Lisa wanted their characters to hook up onscreen. He revealed the pitch they shared with the showrunners by saying:

"Towards the end we actually pitched the idea that Joey and Phoebe had been having casual s*x the entire time. We’d go back and shoot all the historical scenes and just before a moment that everyone recognizes, there’s Joey and Phoebe coming out of a broom closet together. But they were like, 'Nah.'"

The pitch was similar to the way Chandler and Monica got together in London in the season 4 finale. I understand why the showrunners didn't want to repeat the same storyline with Joey and Phoebe. Moreover, David Crane told Metro in December 2019 that he felt pairing up all six characters would be a "mistake."

"It all would have been too tidy and too complete. When your goal is to keep the six characters’ stories together, it would be really easy to go down that road but I think we all felt it would be a mistake."

Phoebe married Mike Hannigan, played by Paul Rudd, in the show's final season. Funnily enough, Joey set them up on a blind date. The soap opera star, however, remained single and continued his ways in the spinoff series Joey.

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Why does Joey and Phoebe's romance make perfect sense?

Despite not getting together onscreen, Joey and Phoebe's potential romance was teased throughout the series. Both of them healthily flirted on occasions and thought highly of each other. I can think of several instances that prove they would have made a great couple, as their relationship was rooted in friendship and compatibility.

Phoebe's quirky personality worked well with Joey's well-intentioned nature. Both characters were fiercely loyal as friends and valued friendship above everything else. They got together every month to catch up over dinner and discuss the others in their group. Phoebe once got mad at Joey when he blew her off for a date, telling him that their friendship was for life and more important than fickle relationships.

Moreover, Phoebe chose Joey (and Ross) as her backup in case they were both single by age 40. Joey gave Phoebe the perfect kiss on her 31st birthday just to cheer her up. He even offered to marry her in season 8 episode 2 when he thought she was pregnant, instead of Rachel.

Like their onscreen characters, Lisa and Matt share a special bond in real life as well. They have frequently expressed their admiration for each other in interviews, which I find to be the most wholesome thing ever.

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Viewers can catch up on all 10 seasons of Friends on HBO Max in the United States.