AI artist reimagines 'Friends' as a classic 1950s-style sitcom with the vintage voiceover and it's surreal

People have a love-hate relationship with artificial intelligence. Countless AI generators are capable of transforming your imagination into images and videos, with some producing digital creations so realistic, it becomes hard to distinguish them from the real thing. The debate between AI critics and enthusiasts rages on, but in the midst of it all, an AI video creator who goes by Saga Lore AI on YouTube churned out a 2-minute video that has garnered widespread praise from the online community.

Using popular AI platforms like Midjourney AI and Runway AI, the creator reimagined how the popular American sitcom "Friends" would have looked had it been made in the 1950s. "Step into the quirky lives of six friends navigating the twists and turns of love, laughter and a whole lot of coffee. Meet the gang from Central Park," the intro began, as the opening titles floated up at the start of the AI video. The video then introduced the six main characters, with the AI-generated voiceover describing Ross Geller as the "lovesick paleontologist with a heart as big as his dinosaur collection."

Along with the voiceover, AI-generated images of the popular characters from the show appeared on the screen. Upon taking a closer look, some of the images could possibly give people an uncanny valley feel since the AI renderings didn't perfectly resemble the actors. Among all the AI-generated cast members, Lisa Kudrow’s portrayal of Phoebe Buffay received the most criticism in the comment section for not resembling her at all. However, the character of Joey Tribbiani, played by Matt LeBlanc, seemed to capture the actor's early to mid-20s look, earning praise for its accuracy in the 1950s setting.

Following up in the video, Rachel Green was aptly introduced as "the fashion-forward girl with big dreams and even bigger hair." Monica Geller, Ross’s determined sister, was described as someone with "a passion for cooking and a need to keep everything just right." The Geller parents were also introduced, alongside Joey Tribbiani as "the actor with a face for the silver screen and a stomach for anything on the menu." Phoebe Buffay was described as "the free spirit with a quirky tune for every occasion." The entire video was shot in a style reminiscent of Panavision 70mm lenses, which were popular from the late 50s to early 80s, giving it a truly vintage feel. Garnering almost 90,000 views in just a month, the video has sparked numerous positive and humorous comments from both AI enthusiasts and original show fans.

@ElTiano21 joked, "They made Phoebe look like she’s still in high school, Mike look like Richard Gere and Gunther like he’s part of the Sopranos family." @kamalphukan15 remarked, "Joey looks perfect in this. His looks are reminiscent of the time when he moves in for the first time and mistakenly hits on Monica." @kevinbergin9971 mentioned, "You even convinced Bill Hader's version of Vincent Price to narrate it." @TheRef006 remarked, "It's more based on the first seasons where everyone was very young. But Phoebe is definitely the only one who doesn't fit in (she doesn't look anything like Lisa Kudrow), the others in one way or another, yes." @mocztenora added, "These faces do have the 50s vibe yet the resemblance is uncanny. This is true magic!"