How much would you pay to own the couch from “Friends?”
What about a reproduction based on the original couch used in the TV Show?
Well, one collector decided that the latter was worth $29,250, which was the final price paid Monday afternoon for the reproduction couch at Julien’s auction in honor of the show’s 30th anniversary. The high estimate was $3,000.
Movie and television props are a tricky business when it comes to authenticity. The lines are blurry between authentic props used in the film, props used in the production of the film but not seen on camera, and even less closely tied items.
Often, top items will be accompanied by photographic evidence such as screen-matching certificates attempting to prove the prop was used in the movie or TV show. Other times, a letter from the prop master serves the same purpose.
In many instances, items which never truly saw the set are described vaguely in auction descriptions, seemingly intentionally, in an effort to use loose ties to the film or show in order to gloss over the item’s true origins.
But the buyer of this “Friends” couch can hardly claim to be hoodwinked. After all, it’s right there in the auction description, which calls it a “studio-made reproduction” and notes it was “modelled from the original by Warner Bros.”
Additionally, the auction house lists provenance saying, “This is a studio-edition authorized reproduction of an item from the production of Friends. It has been made from reference of an original piece in the Warner Bros. archive, and is made available by Julien's on behalf of Warner Bros.”
This is not a case of an auction house obfuscating the authenticity of an item and preying on an ill-informed buyer. Unless the winning bidder failed to read a word of the lot description, they knew this item was not the couch from “Friends,” but instead, a couch produced to resemble the couch from “Friends.” For that, the bidder was willing to pay nearly $30,000.
Though the reproduction couch was the top-selling lot in the auction, it wasn’t the only piece to go for big money.
A dresser from Ross’ apartment (not a reproduction) sold for $10,400.
One bidder paid $9,100 for a VIP Studio Tour and tour of the Warner Bros. Discovery Global Archives, where they (along with up to three guests) will be able to explore the closed-to-the-public archive of what is described as “the studio’s massive collection of original costumes, props, and more with our esteemed archivists.” One must assume there will not be any reproduction couches seen during the tour.
Another eye-catching sale was the $4,550 paid for a business card produced for the show to be used by Monica to display her catering services.
Will Stern is a reporter and editor for cllct.