The “haunted episodes” of Friends will give you nightmares

❘ Published: 2023-10-23T15:41:40

NBC

This creepypasta will keep you up at night: turn off the lights, get under the covers, and prepare for The One with the Haunted Friends Episodes.

If you asked any Friends fans what the scariest thing about the sitcom was, you would likely not get many answers; perhaps there would be a suggestion of Phoebe’s paintings, or how maliciously Ross could act, or how Joey and Rachel almost got together.

But the show, which spanned from 1994-2004, wasn’t exactly known for its horror. There was a Halloween episode in one season, but the show was definitely more interested in making its audience laugh rather than scream.

However, there is a particular haunting story about the series, in which certain episodes take a seriously dark turn. Could we be any more scared?

The One with the Haunted Friends Episodes

A chilling Friends short story by an author named Chris Evangelista has recently been making the rounds, titled “The One with the Haunted Friends Episodes” and it’s definitely worth a read.

Now, creepypastas of haunted episodes of a show is not a new concept, but this particular story, which features a distorted promotional image of the cast as its banner, manages to stand out.

The tale is framed as being “from the journal of Dr. Edgar Burmingham, psychologist and paranormal researcher,” and follows him after he’s sent a number of Friends tapes which contain 10 never-before-seen episodes, which are even “unknown to anyone directly involved with the series.”

However, the reason he’s been sent them is because they horrify anyone who watched them. As he writes, “I’ve rewatched all of them dozens of times at this point. And my headaches are getting worse. And the nightmares.”

What happens in the haunted episodes of Friends?

The first of these episodes is titled ‘The One Where Joey Gets Lost,’ in which Joey gets lost, and presumably left to die, in a sprawling Ikea store. In it, “the laugh track on the episode is slightly off, with the audience’s laughter arriving a few seconds too long after the jokes.”

The second episode takes an even odder turn, as it’s titled ‘The One with Special Guest Star Ted Bundy’.

“In addition to the title card, this episode also flashes the words ‘Special Guest Star Ted Bundy as Himself’ at the beginning in thick white text. This is, of course, impossible – Bundy, a notorious serial killer, was executed in the electric chair in 1989 at Florida State Prison, Bradford County, Florida, whereas the first episode of Friends didn’t premiere until 1994,” it reads.

“However, the person meant to be Ted Bundy looks identical to the real man. Is it an actor covered in heavy make-up? Or an actor who just genuinely looks like Bundy? He sounds like Bundy, too.”

Other episodes continue to grow darker, featuring titles such as ‘The One with the Empty Apartment,’ ‘The One Where Ross Has No Eyes,’ ‘The One Where Monica Has to Clean Up,’ ‘The One with the Broken Bones,’ and ‘The One Where the Void Is Growing, and It Still Calls To You.’

Now, in spite of the growing tension within the story, there is some humor in it, like the real show itself. For example, the narrator states, “I tracked down several cast and crew members of the show, including [REDACTED], [REDACTED], [REDACTED], [REDACTED], and David Schwimmer.”

There is a mention that “fans of the show all have their own individual favorite friend, but one thing seemingly everyone agrees on is that Ross is the worst of the bunch.” We also get lines such as: “The skeleton still has ‘The Rachel’ haircut,” and “‘Can I possibly have any more broken bones?,’ Chandler suddenly asks with dry sarcasm.”

But despite this dark humor, the narrator is clearly being affected by all the tapes, writing: “At this point, I had to stop the tape and run to the bathroom to vomit,” or “I am crying as I type this. I can’t seem to stop.” It doesn’t help that the characters in the show don’t notice the horror, often acting as normal or standing “directly in the middle of the room and look straight into the camera, saying nothing.”

We won’t spoil this story any further, but we highly recommend reading it, if you have the guts. And remember: The void is growing. And it still calls to you.

You can also check out our other Halloween coverage below: