Matthew Perry's Life & Cause Of Death

In the early 1990s, Matthew Perry was gaining recognition on TV when Marta Kauffman and David Crane invited him to play "Chandler Bing" in 'Friends'. Reports suggest he was the only actor who didn’t need to audition for the role and, at 24, was the youngest to join the cast as the witty and insecure Chandler Bing.

Much like his character "Chandler", Perry also came from a broken home, which contributed to years of struggling with mental health issues.

Amid visits to rehab in 1997 and 2001, Perry maintained a successful acting career, with 'Friends' at its peak and several film roles. Between his first and second rehab stints, he was hospitalized for two weeks with acute pancreatitis, losing 20 pounds—a condition linked to alcohol and prescription drug abuse.

Addiction also took a toll on Perry's love life. He dated Yasmine Bleeth in 1995, Julia Roberts from 1995 to 1996, and Lizzy Caplan from 2006 to 2012. In November 2020, he became engaged to literary manager Molly Hurwitz, but they ended their engagement in 2021. While the reasons for his breakups were never openly discussed, rumors suggested that his addiction contributed to the strain in each of his relationships.

Perry returned to rehab in 2011 and later spoke openly about his addiction to help others. He even turned his Malibu home into a rehab facility for those seeking sobriety, though he eventually had to sell it due to financial difficulties. In 2013, Perry told to 'People' that his struggles became impossible to hide. "I couldn't stop. Eventually, things got so bad that I couldn't hide it, and then everybody knew." He clarified that he never used drugs or abused alcohol on set. "I was never high at work," he said. "I was painfully hungover."

After 'Friends', Perry's career never reached the same level of success. He starred in shows like 'Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip' and 'The Odd Couple', and films like 'The Triumph' (which earned him Golden Globe and Emmy nominations), 'Birds of America', and '17 Again'. But none of these matched the fame he had during 'Friends'.

In his memoir, Matthew revealed that while everyone was "sobbing" during the final episode of 'Friends' in 2004, he felt "numb" and "nothing." The irony is clear: the man who made millions laugh with his sarcastic one-liners and charm was actually struggling with deep loneliness and inner demons, unable to truly smile through his battles.

When the 'Friends' reunion happened in 2021, Perry looked very different from the energetic and charming "Chandler" fans remembered. He struggled to speak clearly because of a recent dental surgery and seemed more thoughtful and reserved than his co-stars. During the reunion, he also shared that he had battled depression while filming 'Friends'—something many of his co-stars didn’t know until then.

Perry also recalled how fame from 'Friends' made him lonely. "I was in the white-hot flame of fame. The six of us were just everywhere all the time. From an outsider's perspective, it would seem like I had it all. It was actually a very lonely time for me because I was suffering from alcoholism. It was going on before 'Friends', but it's a progressive disease. I wasn't a massive party guy. I wasn't a bull-in-a-china-shop kind of drinker," the actor shared in later years.

The world was shocked by Matthew Perry’s death on October 28, 2023. The beloved 'Friends' star was just 54 years old when he was found dead in his Los Angeles home, apparently due to drowning in his hot tub.