Warning: This article contains discussion of addiction which some readers may find distressing.
Matthew Perry previously revealed that he'd attended around 6,000 Alcoholics Anonymous meetings in order to curb his addiction.
The actor - best known for playing Chandler Bing in the beloved sitcom Friends - tragically passed away in October 2023 at the age of 54. His cause of death was ultimately ruled as 'the acute effects of ketamine'.
Prior to his passing, Perry had been open about his struggles with drugs and alcohol over the years, revealing in his 2022 memoir, Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing, that he'd first tried alcohol at the age of 14.
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The 17 Again actor would then go on to experience dependency on various drugs over the years, first attending rehab in 1997.
His behind-the-scenes battle would continue throughout his time on Friends, with the star even revealing that he struggled to remember filming from seasons three to six due to his addiction issues.
"I don’t remember three years of it. So none of those," he previously told the BBC. "I was a little out of it."
The memoir also laid bare the extreme lengths which Perry went through in order to combat the addiction.
Perry estimated that he'd checked in to rehab 15 times and undergone 14 stomach surgeries due to health complications. He said he'd even attended as many as 6,000 Alcoholics Anonymous meetings by the time of writing his memoir.
"In the dictionary under the word ‘addict’, there should be a picture of me looking around, very confused," Perry wrote.
Perry's Friends co-star Jennifer Aniston (that's Rachel Green) recently told Vanity Fair that she thinks his death is 'better' for him.
"We did everything we could when we could," she said of her co-stars, Courteney Cox, Matt LeBlanc, David Schwimmer and Lisa Kudrow. "But it almost felt like we’d been mourning Matthew for a long time because his battle with that disease was a really hard one for him to fight.
"As hard as it was for all of us and for the fans, there’s a part of me that thinks this is better. I’m glad he’s out of that pain."
Upon hearing of his passing, Aniston posted a touching tribute to Perry on Instagram.
It read, in part: "He was such a part of our DNA. We were always the 6 of us. This was a chosen family that forever changed the course of who we were and what our path was going to be.
"For Matty, he KNEW he loved to make people laugh. As he said himself, if he didn't hear the ‘laugh’ he thought he was going to die. His life literally depended on it.
"And boy did he succeed in doing just that. He made all of us laugh. And laugh hard."
Aniston concluded: "Matty, I love you so much and I know you are now completely at peace and out of any pain. I talk to you every day… sometimes I can almost hear you saying 'could you BE any crazier?'
"Rest little brother.
"You always made my day…"
If you want friendly, confidential advice about drugs, you can talk to FRANK. You can call 0300 123 6600, text 82111 or contact through their website 24/7, or livechat from 2pm-6pm any day of the week.
Please drink responsibly. If you want to discuss any issues relating to alcohol in confidence, contact Drinkline on 0300 123 1110, 9am–8pm weekdays and 11am–4pm weekends for advice and support.
Additional words by Dan Seddon.
Topics: Celebrity, Matthew Perry, Drugs, Alcohol
Brenna Cooper