In his biography “Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing” Matthew Perry not only speaks very openly about his time as a star of the cult series, but also about his long-standing drug problems. He ruthlessly reports that he almost died from his drug use. The actor also talks about the deaths of other actors in this context – like River Phoenix, with whom he was a close friend. He writes in his book that he cannot understand how it is that such gifted actors as River Phoenix or Heath Ledger have died while Keanu Reeves is still with us.
Even when the book was published in November 2022, passages like these were hotly debated. At the book festival of the “Los Angeles Times” last weekend, these statements were discussed again. Perry publicly apologized there for the lines. That was stupid, the actor explained, explaining that Keanu Reeves was a placeholder for any successful actor simply because he lives on the same street as Perry. He is actually a big fan of Reeves.
Due to his close connection to River Phoenix and his own addiction, his death had taken a toll on the “Friends” star at the time. So much so, that the 53-year-old says he punched a hole in the wall of his colleague Jennifer Aniston’s dressing room when he found out about his death.
On the panel at the book festival, Matthew Perry made it clear that the relevant passages will no longer appear in new editions of his memoirs. In a statement months ago, the 53-year-old was self-critical about the relevant passages and admitted that he should have used his own name instead of that of another colleague. He reaffirmed this insight at the festival. Only in person has he not been able to apologize to “John Wick” star Reeves – but Perry wants to do that too.
In the hit series “Friends”, Matthew Perry played Chandler Bing, who is popular with many fans for his very dry humor, among other things. The actor has often revealed that the role was often not easy for Perry to play due to his addiction. He even reported periods during the shoot that he couldn’t actively remember.
Sources: “Spiegel”, “Daily Mail”
