Courteney Cox Through the Years: Photos of Her ‘Friends’ Era and Beyond

Her beauty stands the test of time! Courteney Cox has been a beloved fixture in fans’ lives for decades, thanks to her starring role as Monica Geller on Friends. Throughout her years in show business, the actress has undergone a transformation — from a fresh-faced star in the making to a seasoned celebrity.

The Alabama native made a name for herself on Friends from 1994 to 2004. As her success skyrocketed, her look changed. She revealed in June 2017 that she had regrets about the procedures she had done over the years.

“Well, what would end up happening is that you go to a doctor who would say, ‘You look great, but what would help is a little injection here or filler there,’” she told New Beauty at the time. “So you walk out and you don’t look so bad and you think, ‘No one noticed — it’s good.’ Then somebody tells you about another doctor: ‘This person’s amazing. They this person who looks so natural.’ You meet them and they say, ‘You should just do this.’ The next thing you know, you’re layered and layered and layered. You have no idea because it’s gradual until you go, ‘Oh, s–t, this doesn’t look right.’”

Cox decided to reverse the effects after a friend said she should have “no more” work done. “I’ve had all my fillers dissolved. I’m as natural as I can be,” she noted. “I feel better because I look like myself. I think that I now look more like the person that I was. I hope I do.”

The Cougar Town alum has become more comfortable with aging in recent years too. “Things are going to change. Everything’s going to drop. I was trying to make it not drop, but that made me look fake,” she explained. “You need movement in your face, especially if you have thin skin like I do. Those aren’t wrinkles — they’re smile lines. I’ve had to learn to embrace movement and realize that fillers are not my friend.”

Cox has plenty to celebrate as she gets older. In her personal life, she is the mother of daughter Coco, whom she welcomed with ex-husband David Arquette in June 2004, and she has been dating Johnny McDaid since 2013. As for her career, she has taken time to look back on Friends by binge-watching the series.

“I don’t remember even being on the show, I have such a bad memory,” she joked on Jimmy Kimmel Live! in March 2020. “I remember obviously loving everybody there and having fun, and I remember certain times of my life. I was there, but I don’t remember the episodes.”

Scroll through the gallery below to see photos of Cox through the years.