“He wasn’t happy”: George Clooney Opens Up About His Friendship with Matthew Perry
Late actor Matthew Perry, remembered as the King of Sarcasm; Chandler Bing from FRIENDS, passed away in October, earlier this year, after drowning in a hot tub at his home. The cause of his death was later revealed as an overdose of ketamine.
George Clooney starred in the drama ER which premiered the same year as Matthew Perry’s FRIENDS. The two projects were regularly filmed at Warner Bros. Studios., which resulted in Clooney and Perry developing a close friendship. George Clooney had known the late actor since he was young and has now revealed a very surprising detail about Matthew Perry’s time on the show. Let’s find out.
Also read: Matthew Perry’s Death Was Caused by His Attempt to Battle Depression
George Clooney says FRIENDS did not bring Matthew Perry joy or happiness or peace
In a recent interview with Deadline, George Clooney while promoting his new movie The Boys in the Boat, opened up about the unfortunate death of his dear friend Matthew Perry. He said,
“I knew Matt when he was 16 years old. We used to play paddle tennis together. He’s about 10 years younger than me. And he was a great, funny, funny, funny kid. He was a kid and all he would say to us, I mean me, Richard Kind, and Grant Heslov, was, I just want to get on a sitcom man.”
Clooney continued to share,
“He said, ‘I just want to get on a regular sitcom and I would be the happiest man on earth.’ And he got on probably one of the best ever. He wasn’t happy. It didn’t bring him joy, or happiness or peace.”
The actor said watching Matthew Perry’s slow demise was hard because he didn’t know what was going on with his friend. The Oceans 11 actor noted that he had no idea that Perry was at the time consuming as many as 12 Vicodins a day. He claimed that Perry’s time on the show just goes on to prove that success and money don’t automatically bring one happiness unless they are happy with their life and themselves.
George Clooney appeared as a guest star on FRIENDS alongside actor Noah Wyle.
Matthew Perry penned about bringing a sober companion with him while shooting season 9 for FRIENDS
In his memoir, Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing, Matthew Perry opened up about his battle with substance abuse and in an interview with the New York Times in 2022 shared,
“I would wake up and have to get 55 Vicodin that day, and figure out how to do it. When you’re a drug addict, it’s all math. I go to this place, and I need to take three. And then I go to this place, and I’m going to take five because I’m going to be there longer.”
Perry continued,
“It’s exhausting but you have to do it or you get very, very sick. I wasn’t doing it to feel high or feel good.”
The late actor did not hold himself from sharing that he struggled while playing his most recognized character as he shared that during the ninth season, he lived in a rehab facility. Perry had a sober companion on set with him. He noted,
“I married Monica and got driven back to the treatment center- at the height of my highest point in FRIENDS, the highest point in my career, the iconic moment on the iconic show- in a pickup truck helmed by a sober technician.”
The actor before his death had appeared on Q With Tom Power and said that when he dies, he doesn’t want people to remember him as Chandler Bing from FRIENDS. He explained that helping someone get sober is the first thing he wants to be remembered for.
