--- description: Do activities you like title: How to Make Friends as an Adult image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- * [Living](/tag/time-section-living/) ## Living Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # How to Make Friends as an Adult by [Samantha Lee, Drake Baer / Business Insider](/author/business-insider/) ## Samantha Lee, Drake Baer / Business Insider Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Oct 23, 2015 4:19 PM CUT by [Samantha Lee, Drake Baer / Business Insider](/author/business-insider/) ## Samantha Lee, Drake Baer / Business Insider Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Oct 23, 2015 4:19 PM CUT Making friends in school was easy. But once you’re all grown up, it gets way harder — especially if you’ve just moved to a new city. Thankfully, social science has figured out a few of the ways that adult friendships form.  Samantha Lee/Business Insider _This_ [_article_](http://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-make-friends-when-youre-a-grown-up-2015-6 "undefined") _originally appeared on_ [_Business Insider_](http://www.businessinsider.com "undefined") _More from Business Insider:_ * [5 ways to change your body language to make people like you](http://www.businessinsider.com/body-language-tricks-become-likable-2015-5 "undefined") * [10 ways introverts can make friends at work](http://www.businessinsider.com/how-introverts-can-make-friends-at-work-2015-8 "undefined") * [Psychologist shares the secret to making friends at work](http://www.businessinsider.com/the-secret-to-making-friends-at-work-2015-4 "undefined") * [The psychology of ‘friends with benefits’](http://www.businessinsider.com/psychology-of-friends-with-benefits-2015-3 "undefined") * [These 10 Types Of Friends Are Costing You Money](http://www.businessinsider.com/these-types-of-friends-are-costing-you-money-2015-1 "undefined") ### 31 Famous Friends Cameos  Brad Pitt – While he was still married to Jennifer Anniston, Brad Pitt played Ross' old high school friend who hated Rachel NBC/Getty Images  George Clooney – Spoofing his E.R. fame, Clooney plays a dreamy doctor who takes care of Rachel's sprained ankle NBC/Getty Images  Adam Goldberg – After Joey moved out, Adam Goldberg played Eddie, Chandler's creepy roommate NBC/Getty Images  Aisha Tyler – The Archer star played Charlie, a paleontologist who first dates Joey and then Ross NBC/Getty Images  Alec Baldwin – Alec Baldwin guest-starred as Pheobe's way-too-enthusiastic date NBC/Getty Images  Anna Faris – Anna Faris had a season-long role as Erica, whose twins Chandler and Monica adopt NBC/Getty Images  Ben Stiller – Ben Stiller appeared as Rachel's date who angrily yells at everyone NBC/Getty Images  Billy Crystal – Crystal plays one of two crazy strangers (with Robin Williams) whose conversation the friends overhear at Central Perk NBC/Getty Images  Robin Williams – Williams plays that other crazy guy in Central Perk NBC/Getty Images  Brooke Shields – Joey ends up regretting going on a date with his crazy stalker played by Brooke Shields NBC/Getty Images  Bruce Willis – Things get complicated when Rachel starts dating Paul Stevens (Bruce Willis), the father of a student Ross is dating NBC/Getty Images  Christine Taylor – Rachel convinces Christine Taylor's Bonnie to shave her head so that Ross will break up with her NBC/Getty Images  Christina Applegate – Along with Reese Witherspoon, Christina Applegate played one of Rachel's spoiled sisters NBC/Getty Images  Dermont Mulroney – Gavin, played by Dermot Mulroney, fills in for Rachel while she's on maternity leave and later becomes a love interest NBC/Getty Images  Charlie Sheen – When Charlie Sheen's Navy man visits Phoebe for an erotic weekend, they both come down with chicken pox NBC/Getty Images  Charlton Heston – Charlton Heston plays himself and gives Joey some acting advice NBC/Getty Images  Dakota Fanning – Dakota Fanning offers Joey some advice on how to handle Chandler and Monica moving out of Manhattan NBC/Getty Images  Danny DeVito – Danny DeVito plays a stripper at Phoebe's bachelorette party NBC/Getty Images  Freddie Prinze Jr. - Freddie Prinze Jr. is perfect as a sensitive male nanny who takes care of Ross and Rachel's daughter NBC/Getty Images  Helen Hunt – In a confusing crossover, Hunt (a Mad About You star) mistakes Phoebe for her twin sister Ursula (a real character played by Lisa Kudrow in both Friends and Mad About You) NBC/Getty Images  Hugh Laurie – The stranger sitting next to Rachel on her flight to England (Hugh Laurie) mocks her plan to break up Ross' wedding NBC/Getty Images  Jay Leno – Leno plays himself interviewing Chandler's mom, an erotic novelist, on The Tonight Show NBC/Getty Images  Jon Favreau – Jon Favreau spent almost a whole season as Monica's super-rich boyfriend who wants to become an Ultimate Fighting Champion NBC/Getty Images  Jon Lovitz – Jon Lovitz guest-starred as a restauranteur in season one and a blind date for Rachel in season 9 NBC/Getty Images  Julia Roberts – Julia Roberts plays "Susie Underpants," a girl whose skirt Chandler pulled down on stage in elementary school NBC/Getty Images  Kristin Davis – The Sex and the City star is befriended by Rachel and Phoebe after she starts dating Joey NBC/Getty Images  Reese Witherspoon – Reese Witherspoon guest-stars as Rachel's younger sister who goes on a date with Ross NBC/Getty Images  Sean Penn – Phoebe must tell her twin sister Ursula's fiancée, played by Sean Penn, that Ursula has been lying to him about her past NBC/Getty Images  Susan Sarandon – In a plot line on Days of Our Lives, Joey gets Susan Sarandon's character's brain NBC/Getty Images  Tate Donovan – Real–life couple Jennifer Anniston and Tate Donovan played a couple on the show, too NBC/Getty Images  Tom Selleck – Tom Selleck's mustachioed Dr. Richard Burke dates Monica on-and-off for several seasons NBC/Getty Images ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4085138/adult-friendship-advice/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4085138/adult-friendship-advice/"},"headline":"How to Make Friends as an Adult","datePublished":"2015-10-23T16:19:11.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T04:42:18.847Z","description":"Do activities you like","url":"https://time.com/4085138/adult-friendship-advice/","keywords":["Living","Friendship","Friends","advice"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Samantha Lee, Drake Baer / Business Insider"}],"articleSection":"","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-living/","name":"Living"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4085138/adult-friendship-advice/","name":"How to Make Friends as an Adult"}}]}] ```