10 Ways That ’70s Show Referenced Friends

Friends and That 70s Show are two of the most iconic shows from the 90s and early 2000s: the first airing in 1994 and the latter starting in 1998. This article compiles the top 10 moments That 70s Show referenced Friends and it really is surprising just how identical some episodes are.

You can see Kelso as Joey/Phoebe, Ross as Eric, Chandler as Hyde, Rachel as Jackie, and Monica as Donna but these next moments are more surprising.  

10Jackie & Rachel: Same “FICA” Reaction When Getting Their First Paycheck

Upon receiving her first paycheck Jackie reacts excitedly saying, “Oh my gosh! It’s a check! And that’s my name! Mine!” and also says to her boss, “Now, I don’t know who FICA is, but [they] stole like 10% of my money.”

Rachel cut herself off from her dad’s funds and needed to start making her own money. When she gets her first paycheck she says, “Look, look, look, look, look my first paycheck! Look at the window, there’s my name! Hi, me!” and finally she confusingly asks, “Who’s FICA? Why’s he getting all my money?”

9Kelso & Donna Lose Brooke’s Baby And Chandler & Joey Lose Ross’s Baby (Both While Babysitting)

In That 70s Show Brooke leaves her baby Betsy with Kelso to babysit and because she won’t stop crying, Kelso hands her off to someone else and then loses track of her. Kelso spends the majority of the episode searching for Betsy before she’s ultimately found with Bob.

Chandler and Joey volunteer to babysit Ross’s son Ben after Ross unexpectedly has to go to the emergency room with Monica for an allergic reaction to Monica’s kiwi pie. After taking Ben on a bus to flirt with some women, Chandler and Joey end up losing Ben for the majority of the episode until he is picked up at the Department of Human Services.

8Hyde Teaches Jackie To Be “Aloof” And Rachel & Monica Teach Chandler To Be “Aloof” Post Breakups

After Jackie and Kelso breakup for the millionth time, Kelso begins to date Eric’s sister Laurie. Jackie asks Hyde to teach her how to be “aloof” so she wouldn’t get irritated when Laurie “burned” her. Hyde tells Jackie she needs “more aloofness” when he’s teaching her to be zen.

When Chandler is trying to get Janice back after going overboard with the commitment. The girls tell Chandler, “You want her back you have to start acting aloof.” Later when he digs himself deeper with Janice, Monica replies, “We said be ‘aloof’ not a ‘doof.'”

7Donna & Eric And Rachel & Ross Fight Over Custody Of The Gang After Their Breakups

Two of the biggest breakups on TV happened when Eric and Donna broke up for the first time and when Ross and Rachel break up after “the break” and both ex-couples fought over the right to hang out with their friends.

Eric and Donna argued over how much time they each get to spend with the rest of the group. Rachel and Ross fight over their friends as Rachel tries to win them over with “tickets to Calvin Klein lingerie show” and ski trips while Ross tries to get them to stay with him with puzzles and darts.

6Eric & Ross Both Get Jealous Over Their Girlfriend’s Time At Work

When Donna gets her new job at the radio station in Eric is jealous of all the time she spends there and is upset when she wont choose him and their relationship over her career. This can be seen as a direct correlation to when Rachel gets her job and Ross is madly jealous of Mark and that Rachel stays late to work.

While neither Ross nor Eric had anything to worry about, both show up at their girlfriend’s jobs to try and “mark their territory.”

5Donna Gets Eric The “Ugly Ring” And Joey Gets Chandler The “Ugly Watch” (Then They Both Lose Them)

This is another storyline that was conspicuously taken from the Friends script book. Donna buys Eric a ring as a symbol of their love and how much they had grown as a couple. Eric refrains from telling Donna how much he detests the ring but tells everyone else and then proceeds to lose the ring.

Joey gives Chandler a watch and Chandler goes on to Phoebe about how much he hated it and then loses it. Other than the difference in accessories, the storyline is pretty much identical.

4Fez Hosts The Newlywed Game & Ross Hosts The Apartment Game

The two couples of That ’70s Show, Eric and Donna, and Jackie and Kelso, play The Newlywed Game, hosted by Fez. Donna and Eric both think it ridiculous that Kelso believes he knows Jackie better than Eric knows Donna but in the end, the pair that swore they would win actually loses.

When the group of friends plays the trivia game for the apartment in “The One With The Embryos.” Like Fez, Ross is more than willing to host the game and in the end, the confident pair lost.

3Kelso And Joey Both Donate Sperm For Money

When Kelso donates his sperm in “Kelso’s Career,” it immediately reminds fans of Friends when Joey did the same thing in “The One Where Rachel Finds Out.” In that episode, he could not sleep with any of his dates because he had taken part in a medical study to donate sperm because he was struggling as an actor.

There weren’t many other (if any) sitcoms in the 90s where lead characters were donating their sperm for money as a storyline so when this appeared in That 70s Show it was very evident where they had gotten the idea from.

2Eric And Ross Both Have Princess Leia Fantasies (Both Their Girlfriends Dress Up)

Eric’s high level of nerd never goes unnoticed throughout the series and no one understood his love for Star Wars more than Donna. In the episode  “Short and Curlies,” Eric is leaving for Africa soon so Donna decides to surprise Eric by dressing up as Princess Leia.

Rachel Green dresses up as Princess Leia in “the bikini scene” for Ross because he has a fantasy like Eric. While Star Wars does not belong to any one show, obviously, but using the famous role of Princess Leia in such a similar storyline is a clear nod to the popular Friends episode.

1Six Side Characters That Appeared In Both Series

Bruce Willis who plays sleazy Vic at the Playboy Mansion who offers Kelso a job and that’s when he moves to Chicago. Bruce also played Rachel’s boyfriend Paul in Friends when he played the dad of Ross’s young student girlfriend. Also, Debra Jo Rupp played both Kitty in That 70s Show and Alice, Phoebe’s brother’s teacher and later wife in Friends. Brooke Shields also played Jackie’s mom in That 70s Show and Joey’s stalker in Friends when she thinks Joey is actually Drake Ramoray, who he portrays on Days of Our Lives.

Steve Ireland played Rachel’s Boss at Ralph Lauren (who she accidentally goes to kiss post-interview) and he also plays Kitty’s boss, Dr. Ashley, in one episode of That 70s Show. Also Ross’s son Ben (Cole Sprouse) makes a cameo alongside his twin brother Dylan in That 70s Show at the end of the episode where Kelso gets lost at Funland. Finally, there’s Morgan Fairchild, who played the very flirty Nora Tyler Bing and also played Brooke’s mother. The crossovers of storylines and actors make it evident why both these series were so popular during their time.