Matthew Perry’s co-stars from Friends have all shared their reactions and tributes to sadly discovering that the actor had passed away on October 28 at age 54 after an apparent drowning at a home in Los Angeles.
Perry’s most well-known credit is for playing the character Chandler Bing on the hit show Friends for 10 years, where he starred alongside David Schwimmer, Jennifer Aniston, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, and Scream star Courteney Cox.
Related: Matthew Perry Wanted Zac Efron To Play Him In His Biopic After Sharing Roles In ’17 Again’
The late actor was laid to rest at a service for his close family and friends on November 3.
Joint Statement
Since his passing, his Friends co-stars have shared their reactions and tributes – one being in a joint statement provided to People – see below.
“We are all so utterly devastated by the loss of Matthew. We were more than just cast mates. We are a family,” said Perry’s co-stars. “There is so much to say, but right now we’re going to take a moment to grieve and process this unfathomable loss.”
“In time we will say more, as and when we are able.
“For now, our thoughts and our love are with Matty’s family, his friends, and everyone who loved him around the world.”
Since releasing their joint statement, each Friends star has had time to find their own words to share about Perry’s passing.
David Schwimmer
Schwimmer, who starred as Ross Geller in Friends, took to Instagram yesterday November 16 to pay tribute to his late co-star.
The actor wrote, “Thank you for ten incredible years of laughter and creativity.”
“I will never forget your impeccable comic timing and delivery. You could take a straight line of dialogue and bend it to your will, resulting in something so entirely original and unexpectedly funny it still astonishes.”
“And you had heart. Which you were generous with, and shared with us, so we could create a family out of six strangers.”
He also shared a BTS photo of himself and Perry during the filming of a Friends episode, a photo he calls one of his “favorite moments” with the late 17 Again star.
“This photo is from one of my favorite moments with you. Now it makes me smile and grieve at the same time.
I imagine you up there, somewhere, in the same white suit, hands in your pockets, looking around— ‘Could there BE any more clouds?’”
Jennifer Aniston
Aniston, who starred as Rachel Green in Friends, also took to Instagram to pay tribute to Perry – she wrote the following, see below.
“Oh boy this one has cut deep…”
“Having to say goodbye to our Matty has been an insane wave of emotions that I’ve never experienced before.”
“We all experience loss at some point in our lives. Loss of life or loss of love. Being able to really SIT in this grief allows you to feel the moments of joy and gratitude for having loved someone that deep. And we loved him deeply.”
“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.”
“In the last couple weeks, I’ve been poring over our texts to one another. Laughing and crying then laughing again. I’ll keep them forever and ever. I found one text that he sent me out of nowhere one day. It says it all. (See the second slide…)”
“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…”
Lisa Kudrow
Kudrow, who starred as twins Phoebe and Ursula Buffay, also took to Instagram to pay tribute to the late star, see below.
“Shot the pilot, Friends Like Us, got picked up then immediately, we were at the NBC Upfronts.”
“Then… You suggested we play poker AND made it so much fun while we initially bonded. Thank you for that.”
“Thank you for making me laugh so hard at something you said, that my muscles ached, and tears poured down my face EVERY DAY.”
“Thank you for your open heart in a six way relationship that required compromise. And a lot of “talking.” Thank you for showing up at work when you weren’t well and then, being completely brilliant.”
“Thank you for the best 10 years a person gets to have.
Thank you for trusting me.
Thank you for all I learned about GRACE and LOVE through knowing you.
Thank you for the time I got to have with you, Matthew.”
Courteney Cox
Cox, who starred as Monica Geller and also as Perry’s main love interest in the series, has also shared her reaction and tribute in a post made to her Instagram – see below.
“I am so grateful for every moment I had with you Matty and I miss you every day.”
“When you work with someone as closely as I did with Matthew, there are thousands of moments I wish I could share. For now here’s one of my favorites.”
“To give a little backstory, Chandler and Monica were supposed to have a one night fling in London. But because of the audience’s reaction, it became the beginning of their love story.”
“In this scene, before we started rolling, he whispered a funny line for me to say.
He often did things like that. He was funny and he was kind. 🤍🕊️”
Cox also shared a clip of the two that adds context to her words, watch below.
Matt LeBlanc
LeBlanc, who starred as Joey Tribbiani and famously as Perry’s character’s best friend, also took to Instagram to share some words about his late friend’s passing.
“It is with a heavy heart I say goodbye. The times we had together are honestly among the favorite times of my life.”
“It was an honor to share the stage with you and to call you my friend. I will always smile when I think of you and I’ll never forget you. Never.”
”Spread your wings and fly brother you’re finally free. Much love.”
“And I guess you’re keeping the 20 bucks you owe me.”
