By Joey Zinzi '25
On October 28, 2023, the beloved actor Matthew Perry, best known for his role in the TV series Friends, was found deceased in a hot tub in his Los Angeles home at the age of fifty-four. The official police report specifies that the cause of death is, unfortunately, still undetermined, but there seems to be no indication of foul play. The police responded to his home at around 4 p.m. and found him unresponsive in his hot tub.
Matthew Perry was born on August 19, 1969, in Williamstown, Massachusetts. He grew up mainly with his stepmother and father. Perry learned how to play tennis at a young age, which led to him being named one of Canada's top-ranked tennis players. Perry’s life trajectory changed when he was 15 and moved to Los Angeles to live with his father. He believed that if he truly wanted to be happy, he needed to be famous. He yearned for fame when he came to the acting capital of the world, Los Angeles, describing that “Fame would change everything, and I yearned for it more than any other person on the face of the planet.” Matthew made his debut as a young actor in the film, “A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon.” Although this did not satisfy his dreams of becoming famous, he continued to pursue and work even harder for his dreams. His fame finally skyrocketed when Perry was cast in the popular TV series, Friends. The show would go on to become one of the most well-known shows to ever come out of the 90’s and make Perry one of the most recognizable television show actors of his generation.
Perry played the character Chandler Bing who was beloved by fans of the show and deemed as many people’s favorite character in the show. His character was funny, hilarious, and lovable all throughout the 10 seasons the show was on air. Throughout his time on Friends, he developed strong relationships between his 5 costars: Jennifer Anniston, Courtney Cox, David Schwimmer, Lisa Kudrow, and Matthew Leblanc. They grew to love him and his charismatic personality. Perry's character Chandler had inspired many along the way. In scene one, Chandler was unhappy with his job in Statistical Analysis and Data Reconfiguration and shared an apartment with his best friend Joey Tribianni. The show ended with him being a father of twins alongside another one of the Friends characters, Monica, he is succeeding in his pursuit of love throughout the whole show.
Unfortunately, while on this show, Perry struggled with his ongoing drug and alcohol addiction. This addiction started with Perry drinking alcohol at a young age and later getting addicted to the drug “Vicodin” (which is a type of pain killer that is highly addictive in itself). Perry was prescribed Vicodin because of a jet ski accident which left him injured but unfortunately escalated into an addiction. At some points in his life, he was taking 55 of these pills per day. Perry had a near death experience in 2019, where he almost suffered a near-fatal eruption of his large intestine due to these pain killers.
Thankfully, this near-death experience inspired Perry to reach out and share his battle with addiction. He spread his story with the world and began to help others struggling with addiction to have the courage to do the same. He began by going through rehabilitation and treatment which led him on the track to sobriety. He continued to inspire many when he “converted his mansion in Malibu, California, into a sober living house” in 2013 according to Lenthang (2023).
When it was announced on October 28th, 2023, that the actor we all loved and adored had been pronounced as deceased on the scene, fans across the world were left shocked and devastated. Perry’s ability to inspire so many and help those struggling in silence is rivaled to no other. When asked what he wanted to be remembered for, he said “he would prefer to be remembered for helping people” which is exactly what he did.
Matthew Perry had been quoted to “light up any room” and he had stated he wanted to be as somebody who lived well, loved well, was a seeker.” Matthew Perry inspired and helped so many people who were silently struggling feel less alone in their difficult situation.
Rest in peace, Matthew Langford Perry: you will be remembered as a hero and inspiration. We wish the best to his friends and family who are dealing with his passing, and hope that his story of positivity is spread around the world and continues on his legacy of helping others.