The babies who once played Emma, the daughter of Ross and Rachel on Friends, have resurfaced after more than two decades — and fans of the show are in awe. Twin sisters Athena and Alexandra Conley, now 23 years old, recently shared a rare update on their lives, sparking a wave of nostalgia across the Friends fandom. Once just six-month-old infants appearing in the closing episodes of Season 8 and throughout Season 9, the twins have grown up completely out of the Hollywood spotlight — until now.

Their reappearance has sent a ripple through social media, especially among longtime fans who remember baby Emma as one of the final big plot developments of the series. While many knew that twins were often used to play babies in television shows due to child labor laws, few had followed the lives of the Conley sisters after their short but unforgettable stint on Friends. Now, after graduating from California Polytechnic State University in 2024, the sisters are stepping forward and embracing their quirky piece of TV history.

“It’s actually crazy because growing up, I always just knew I was on Friends, but I didn’t really know what that meant,” Alexandra said in an interview with People published July 1. “It didn’t hit me, I think until like maybe like middle school or even like early high school, how big that was.” Her sister Athena added that she didn’t fully understand their cultural significance until she rewatched the series herself. “Now I’m obsessed with Friends. It’s one of my favorite shows ever. So, watching it now and seeing ourselves — I’m like, ‘This is crazy.’”

One of the most surprising things for fans is not just how grown up the twins are, but how grounded they’ve remained. They stepped away from acting shortly after their time on the show, and both sisters chose to pursue their education and personal lives outside of the entertainment industry. Yet, even years later, they still carry their experience on Friends with a mixture of humor and pride. Athena recently joined the viral “Holly Airball” TikTok trend, teasingly revealing that she had been on TV as a baby. The punchline? A screenshot from Friends, featuring baby Emma in the background of a scene with Ross and Rachel. “Favorite fun fact,” she captioned the post — a playful nod to the role that unknowingly made them part of television history.

Of course, their time on the show wasn’t without its challenges — as Alexandra recalled with a laugh, “They ended up replacing us because I did cry too much.” The twins appeared in Season 9 but were replaced in Season 10 by a new set of twins due to the natural difficulties of working with infants, and the requirements of child labor regulations. Still, their mother remembered the set fondly. According to both Athena and Alexandra, their mom described the cast as warm, funny, and endlessly kind. “She said that all of the cast members were so nice and they were all hilarious, just cracking jokes the whole time,” Athena shared. “She felt like she was like watching the show even when filming wasn’t taking place.”

What’s most remarkable is how a brief stint on one of the biggest sitcoms of all time has remained a beloved memory for the Conley twins, even though they weren’t old enough to remember it firsthand. The passage of time has only magnified the significance. In an age where nostalgia reigns and rewatching Friends has become almost a cultural rite of passage, the revelation of Emma’s actresses as adults is stirring something deep among fans. To see those baby faces now grown, living their own lives, is a jarring but heartwarming reminder of how much time has passed since the show’s original run — and how enduring its legacy truly is.

“The show continues to resonate,” Athena said. “Because the characters are all so relatable, and I think that makes the audience kind of feel like they’re part of the group, which is really special.” And in a way, the Conley twins have always been a part of that group, even if their role was silent and fleeting. Their story is now yet another thread in the rich tapestry of Friends lore, one that reminds us just how layered and meaningful even the smallest characters can become over time.

The reappearance of Athena and Alexandra Conley is more than a fun fact — it’s a living echo of the show’s impact, a real-life continuation of the story fans have cherished for decades. For those who remember Emma as a newborn in Ross and Rachel’s arms, seeing her — or rather, them — grown up is a powerful, emotional jolt. It connects the fictional with the real, past with present, and leaves fans both amazed and deeply nostalgic. The babies from Friends are now adults with voices and stories of their own, and the world is more than ready to listen.