Friends Had To Ban Controversial 9-11 Scene, But You Still Can Watch It

Remember the Friends episode in which Chandler and Monica set off on their honeymoon vacation? In their best style, the beloved characters have a hilarious storyline with the other newlywed couple jumping them in line at the airport and getting the treatment Monica expected.

Upset that the strangers were upgraded to first class while she and Chandler weren't, Monica sneaks into the first-class lounge but is escorted by the airport guard and steals an orange as a last-ditch effort to make her honeymoon trip more enjoyable.

That was part of Episode 3 of Season 8, titled 'The One Where Rachel Tells Ross' (about her pregnancy, of course). And as it turns out, those Monica-Chandler scenes were not part of the original plot. The writers had to completely change the episode after 9/11 happened.

Apparently, the initial episode was written, filmed, and produced before the tragedy, but it was scheduled to air two weeks after. So the writers had to move up the release date and reshoot the airport scenes. The episode premiered with the new storyline on October 11, 2001.

However, six years later, the original storyline was released and shared by viewers on social media. You can now watch it on YouTube, as nearly 9 million viewers have already done.

Today, there is nothing shocking or confusing about the airport scenes shown in the video. If anything, they are funnier and more jokey than the storyline that made it into the final cut in 2001. But still, we can certainly see why they were banned.

Instead of chasing free goodies, Chandler and Monica get their first-class upgrade in the original story, though not without getting in trouble. After seeing the sign that says 'Federal Law Prohibits Any Joking Regarding Aircraft Hijacking or Bombing,' Chandler can't help but joke about it, of course.

'You don't have to worry about me, ma'am. I take my bombs very seriously,' he says before being dragged away by airport security.

The story continues in the search room, where some more fairly innocent bomb jokes are made. But no matter how funny and lighthearted they seem today, there is no way such a storyline would look good in October 2001.

So the creators of Friends certainly made a good decision when they took it off the show. And they did well to wait years before releasing it.