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Matthew Perry recently released his memoir Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing on Nov. 1, where he opened up about his past struggles with sobriety. He revealed his addiction began when he was 24, just as the actor was cast in the hit NBC show Friends. Perry starred alongside Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, and David Schwimmer for ten seasons spanning 237 episodes, from the series debut in 1994 to the 2004 finale.
Emotions were running high from his fellow co-stars during their series finale, titled The Last One, which saw the group go their separate ways in a satisfying conclusion. Perry says his cast mates couldn't stop crying after filming the last scene, though he claims he felt no emotion at all. His statements are recorded in his new memoir, captured via BuzzFeed, where readers get an inside look at how he felt during the 2004 finale.
"It was January 23, 2004. The keys on the counter, a guy who looked a lot like Chandler Bing said, 'Where?' 'Embryonic Journey' by Jefferson Airplane played, the camera panned to the back of the apartment door, then Ben, our first AD, and very close friend, shouted for the last time, 'That's a wrap,' and tears sprang from almost everyone's eyes like so many geysers. We had made 237 episodes, including this last one, called, appropriately enough, 'The Last One.' Jennifer Aniston was sobbing — after a while, I was amazed she had any water left in her entire body. Even Matt LeBlanc was crying. But I felt nothing. I couldn't tell if that was because of the opioid buprenorphine I was taking, or if I was just generally dead inside. So, instead of sobbing, I took a slow walk around the stage with my then-girlfriend — also appropriately called Rachel — stage 24 at Warner Bros. in Burbank (a stage that after the show ended would be renamed 'The Friends Stage.' We said our various goodbyes, agreeing to see each other soon in the way that people do when they know it's not true, and then we headed out to my car."
The Friends finale is widely regarded as a fantastic conclusion to the long-running series, giving the beloved characters a gracious exit from the show. Unfortunately, Perry may have missed out on the special moment with the co-stars he shared the screen with for ten years, though he's clearly shown some remorse.
Matthew Perry Remains in the Headlines
Matthew Perry's memoir depicts a few health scares and inner battles the actor faced over the past three decades. The revelations have kept his name in the headlines for various reasons, including his apparent hate for John Wick actor Keanu Reeves. Perry mentioned the tragic deaths of River Phoenix and Heath Ledger before saying, "but Keanu Reeves still walks among us?" He's since backtracked on his comments, saying he randomly chose a name, though the statement was strange nonetheless.
Additionally, the actor was forced to step away from Don't Look Up in 2021 due to a health scare and claims he's spent over $9 million on his path to sobriety. Perry also says he almost died in 2018 from opioid abuse, though he luckily pulled through. Fans can read about all this and more in his memoir, Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing, available for purchase now.