Matthew Perry Aka ‘Chandler’ Of Friends Series Dead At 54

Co-stars and friends of Matthew Perry say his untimely death at 54 has made them “heartbroken”.

The American actor was discovered dead at his Los Angeles residence. He is remembered for his most iconic role as ‘Chandler Bing’ from the 1990s tv series ‘Friends’.

His relatives claimed he had “brought so much joy to the world,” while the sitcom’s writers called him a “brilliant talent” and “always the funniest person in the room.”

Perry received recognition recently for his candid remarks on mental health.

Friends, a television series that tracked the lives of six friends in New York and ran from 1994 to 2004, had a major cultural influence at that time. The 2004 finale was the most watched, with over 52 million people in the US alone watching it.

Friends fraternity remembers ‘Chandler’

According to Deadline, Perry’s death “still seems impossible” according to the show’s creators, Marta Kauffman and David Crane, as well as executive producer Kevin Bright. In a joint statement, they said, “We will always cherish the joy, the light, the blinding intelligence he brought to every moment – not just to his work, but in life as well. He was always the funniest person in the room. More than that, he was the sweetest, with a giving and selfless heart.”

His on-screen lover Janice, Maggie Wheeler, expressed that the happiness he offered to so many people during his “too short lifetime will live on.”

Morgan Fairchild, who portrayed erotic novelist Nora Bing and the mother of Matthew Perry on film, expressed her heartbreak over the premature passing of her “son.”

Due to his drug use, Perry had health issues in 2018 that included a ruptured colon that required many surgeries. He said in 2016 on BBC Radio 2 that his drug and alcohol abuse prevented him from remembering the three years he spent filming Friends.

Actor Hank Azaria, who starred in five Friends episodes, paid homage to Perry’s efforts to support those battling addiction.

Perry “didn’t watch the show”

He was nominated for an Emmy in 2002 for the performance. It has been able to find a new generation of fans thanks to frequent replays and streaming sites.

In an interview from 2022, Perry mentioned that he was unable to watch Friends despite the show’s widespread appeal. “I didn’t watch the show, and haven’t watched the show, because I could go, ‘Drinking, opiates, drinking, cocaine,'” he added. “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.”

Perry was chosen to play uncomfortable Chandler Bing, who is well-known for his witty one-liners and immature interactions with roommate Joey Tribbiani.

In Aaron Sorkin’s The West Wing, he played associate White House lawyer Joe Quincy, which led him two Emmy nominations in 2003 and 2004 for outstanding guest actor in a drama series.

After playing the title part in Sorkin’s subsequent series, Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip, he went on to write and produce Mr. Sunshine, a programme in which he also portrayed the title role.

When the Friends ensemble got back together for a televised reunion in 2021, Perry came out about his mental health issues during the height of the show’s popularity.