Friends (1994)

The NBC sitcom about six twenty-somethings in New York City ran for ten seasons (236 episodes) from 1994 to 2004 and became one of the highest-rated shows of its era, with the finale watched by 52.5 million Americans. Its syndication and later Netflix licensing (for which Netflix paid $100 million per year) made it one of the most profitable television properties in history. Friends defined a decade of popular culture and remains a template for ensemble sitcom construction — the "six equal leads" format it pioneered is still widely imitated.