Friends star Matthew Perry ‘has died aged 54 in accidental jacuzzi drowning at LA-area home’ – as heartbroken friends say they are in a ‘state of shock’
- Matthew Perry has died aged 54 ‘after drowning in his jacuzzi at home,’ sources told DailyMail.com on Saturday
- Perry rose to fame in his role as ‘Chandler Bing’ on the hit 90s sitcom Friends, which ran for 10 seasons
- Law enforcement sources said the actor was found on Saturday at a home in Los Angeles after first responders were called to the scene for a cardiac arrest
Friends star Matthew Perry has died aged 54 ‘after drowning in his jacuzzi at home,’ sources have told DailyMail.com.
Law enforcement sources said the actor was found on Saturday at a home in Los Angeles after first responders were called to the scene at around 4pm (PDT) for a cardiac arrest.
Sources said he was found in a jacuzzi at the home but that no drugs were discovered at the scene – and there was no indication of foul play.
He had reportedly played a two-hour game of Pickleball prior to his death after which he sent his assistant out on an errand. When they returned, the assistant found Perry unresponsive and dialed 911.
Perry rose to fame in his role as ‘Chandler Bing’ on the hit 90s sitcom Friends, which ran for 10 seasons, and has spoken openly about his battle to overcome a decades-long drug and alcohol addiction.
Law enforcement sources said the actor was found on Saturday at a home in Los Angeles. He is seen here earlier last week
Aerial images show Perry’s pool and hot tub where he was reportedly found dead
Matthew Perry ‘s father, John Bennett Perry, 82, was seen arriving at his son’s LA home looking stricken just hours after the Friends star’s death
The 82-year-old was later joined by Perry’s mom, Suzanne (left), and stepdad Keith Morrison (right) who appeared morose as they pulled up to the home
Perry rose to fame for his role as ‘Chandler Bing’ on the hit 90s sitcom Friends, which ran for 10 seasons
A source told the outlet there was no sign of foul play, and that robbery-homicide detectives are investigating his death.
In his last post to his Instagram, shared earlier this week, the star shared images of him in his pool, saying: ‘Oh, so warm water swirling around makes you feel good? I’m Mattman.’
Perry has been candid and public about his problems with drugs and alcohol, after first going to rehab in 1997 for what was said to a pain medication addiction after a jet skiing accident.
Following this initial stint, he then went to rehab again in 2001 and 2011. He told an interviewer in 2016 that he doesn’t remember filming three seasons of Friends.
A longtime friend of Perry’s – who was in recovery with him – told DailyMail.com: ‘Everyone is in a total state of shock. People are crying on the phone and struggling to accept this news.
‘It’s no secret that he struggled with drugs and alcohol for years but the last time I spoke to him, which was within the last few weeks, he seemed to be in a good place.
‘He was upbeat and sounded sober and positive.
‘He’d been to rehab 17 times and nearly died from opioid abuse but he was someone who was sincere about taking his life, and his sobriety, one day at a time.
‘It’s such tragic news. Everyone is praying he didn’t relapse. Matt was a genuinely lovely guy. He was always the first to welcome newcomers to the group and would always volunteer to help and be of service.
‘We are all struggling to come to terms with this terrible news.’
In his last post to his Instagram, posted earlier this week, the star shared images of him in his pool
A source told the outlet there was no sign of foul play, and that robbery-homicide detectives are investigating his death after he was allegedly found in his hot tub (pictured)
Pictures in the wake of Perry’s death emerged showing the pool and hot tub at the Friends star’s home (pictured)
Perry had previously posted images on social media making use of the huge pool and hot tub
A coroner’s vehicle was also seen at the scene as family, friends and fans grappled with the loss of the beloved actor
The Friends star laid bare the height of his terrible drug and alcohol addiction battle which nearly cost him his life in a memoir titled ‘Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing: A Memoir’.
Perry also revealed that his colon ruptured as a result of his opioid addiction when he was 49.
Doctors gave him only a two percent chance of survival and he was in a coma for two weeks followed by months more in the hospital.
Perry required 14 surgeries to help repair all of the abdominal damage, and he admitted to having gone to rehab 15 times over the years in hopes of kicking his drug addiction.
At one point during his Friends career, he admits he was taking 55 Vicodin a day and was down to 128 pounds but yet he ‘didn’t know how to stop.’
He told an interviewer in 2016 that he doesn’t remember filming three seasons of Friends.
‘I had this odd rule that I would never drink on a set,’ Perry said. ‘But I went to work in extreme cases of hangover. It’s so horrible to feel that way and have to work and be funny on top of that.’
Friends star Mathew Perry has died aged 54 ‘after drowning in his jacuzzi at home,’ sources said
He first went to rehab in 1997 for what was said to a pain medication addiction after a jet skiing accident
Last year, he published a memoir titled ‘Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing: A Memoir’
Actor Matthew Perry and actress Julia Roberts hug each other on the set of ‘Friends’
Perry’s dream of widespread recognition came true with the NBC sitcom Friends, which followed the lives of six people trying to make their way in their twenties in New York City
Pictured: (l-r) Lisa Kudrow as Phoebe Buffay, Matthew Perry as Chandler Bing, Jennifer Aniston as Rachel Green, David Schwimmer as Ross Geller, Courteney Cox as Monica Geller, Matt Le Blanc as Joey Tribbiani
He even revealed he would go to real estate open houses – not because he was interested in buying property but to see if he could steal drugs from medicine cabinets.
Born on August 19, 1969 in Massachusetts, Perry grew up in Ottawa and was raised by his mother, Suzanne Morrison, a Canadian writer and former press aide for Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau.
Morrison and Perry’s father were married from 1968 to 1970 and she later married Canadian broadcast journalist Keith Morrison, who has been on Dateline for decades, in 1981.
In Canada, Perry was a top-rated tennis player but at 15 moved to Los Angeles to be closer to his father, John Bennett Perry, an actor known for several shows, including Falcon Crest, and later on Old Spice commercials.
In the 1980s and ’90s, Perry landed spots on the decades’ most popular TV shows like Charles in Charge, Who’s The Boss?, Growing Pains and Beverly Hills, 90210.
He also had a role in A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon, a movie released in 1988 that starred River Phoenix.
The film was ‘one of the greatest experiences I’ve ever had, because I was 16 years old and in Chicago all by myself, no parents around,’ Perry told BuzzFeed. ‘I knew that I wanted to act.’
He told The New York Times in 2002 that he sought fame. ‘There was steam coming out of my ears, I wanted to be famous so badly.
Perry is seen here in 1987 as he promoted his first network series ‘Second Chance’, which was shown on Fox
After moving to Los Angeles, Perry landed spots on TV’s most popular shows during the 1980s and 1990s, he is seen here in an episode of Who’s the Boss?, which ran from 1984 to 1992
Perry, left as Fred Roberts in the film A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon, which was released in 1988 and starred River Phoenix, right
‘You want the attention, you want the bucks, and you want the best seat in the restaurant. I didn’t think what the repercussions would be.’
Perry’s dream of widespread recognition came true with the NBC sitcom Friends, which followed the lives of six people trying to make their way in their twenties in New York City.
Audiences adored the show during its ten-season run and continue to do so today despite the show ending over 15 years ago.
During Friends, Perry also starred in movies like Fools Rush In and The Whole Nine Yards.
After the series, he was in several television shows but did not achieve the longevity and success of Friends. He continued to land roles in movies like 2009’s 17 Again.
Perry never married and ended his engagement to Molly Hurwitz, a talent manager, in 2021.
He dated several well-known actresses including Julia Roberts and Lizzy Caplan.
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