The actor was found dead at his home in Los Angeles.
Matthew Perry – best known for playing Chandler Bing in the hit sitcom Friends – has died at the age of 54.
The actor was found dead at his home in Los Angeles following an apparent drowning, his representative told NBC News.
According to TMZ, Perry was found in the Jacuzzi at his home, while law enforcement sources have stated that there was no sign of foul play and an official cause of death is yet to be confirmed.
Perry became a household name following his role in the much-loved comedy, where he starred alongside Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, David Schwimmer and Matt LeBlanc.
Perry starred as Chandler throughout the entirety of the series, which aired from 1994 to 2004. The final episode of Friends went on to be the most watched TV episode of the 2000s, being watched by 52.5 million in the US.
Perry was open about his personal struggles, writing about his addiction to painkillers and alcohol in his memoir, Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing, which was published last year and became a bestseller.
In an interview last year, Perry admitted that although Friends had continued to hold a special place in the heart of many fans, he had never watched the series.
He stated: “I didn’t watch the show, and haven’t watched the show, because I could go, ‘Drinking, opiates, drinking, cocaine’. I could tell season by season, by how I looked. That’s why I don’t wanna watch it, because that’s what I see.
“But I think I’m going to start to watch it because it’s been an incredible thing to watch it touch the hearts of different generations.”
We are devastated to learn of Matthew Perry’s passing. He was a true gift to us all. Our heart goes out to his family, loved ones, and all of his fans. pic.twitter.com/Xv6HkpSEBl
— FRIENDS (@FriendsTV) October 29, 2023
Leading the tributes to the late actor was Friends star Maggie Wheeler, who played Perry’s on-screen girlfriend Janice. She shared a picture of them both in the show on her Instagram.
Wheeler wrote: “What a loss.The world will miss you Mathew Perry . The joy you brought to so many in your too short lifetime will live on. I feel so very blessed by every creative moment we shared.”
Morgan Fairchild, who played Chandler’s mother Nora Bing, said: “I’m heartbroken about the untimely death of my ‘son’ … The loss of such a brilliant young actor is a shock.”
The star was also remembered by Viola Davis, who shared a picture of Perry on her Instagram, writing: “This is devastating. Your book shifted so many close to my heart. The people no one sees and most throwaway. It was a gift. Beyond the joy you brought to many, your heart reigned supreme. Rest well…..know that you brought love.”
The official Friends Instagram page also shared its condolences over Perry’s death, writing: “We are devastated to learn of Matthew Perry’s passing. He was a true gift to us all. Our heart goes out to his family, loved ones, and all of his fans.”
Outside of his work on Friends, Perry starred in films such as 17 Again alongside Zac Efron and TV series like Mr Sunshine, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, The Odd Couple and more recently played Ted Kennedy in The Kennedys: After Camelot, on which he also served as an executive producer.
Aside from his acting career, Perry also lobbied the US Congress as a celebrity spokesperson in 2011 in support of funding for drug courts, a specialised court docket program that aims to help people recover from substance abuse addiction in order to reduce possible future criminal activity.
In 2013, he received a Champion of Recovery award from the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy for opening up a sober-living facility in his former Malibu home. He named it Perry House but sold the property in 2015 admitting that it was “too expensive to run and the business didn’t really work”.
He remained committed to helping those struggling with addiction, talking about relocation plans with The Hollywood Reporter and saying: “I’ve had a lot of ups and downs in my life and a lot of wonderful accolades but the best thing about me is that if an alcoholic comes up to me and says, ‘Will you help me stop drinking?’ I will say, ‘Yes. I know how to do that.’”
As of now, the investigation into Perry’s death is ongoing.