Inside Matthew Perry's many addictions and his $9M bid to beat his demons
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: The world is grappling with the heartbreaking news of Matthew Perry's untimely passing at the age of 54 on Saturday, October 28.
Known for his indelible role as Chandler Bing on the iconic TV show 'Friends', Perry's life was a rather bewildering interplay of global stardom and deeply entrenched personal struggles, particularly with addiction.
Matthew Perry's costly battle against substance abuse
The actor's well-documented battle with substance abuse was an ongoing narrative in his life. It included numerous visits to rehabilitation centers, critical surgeries, and an astounding expenditure of $9 million in pursuit of sobriety.
Perry offered a raw, unfiltered account of his struggles with addiction in his tell-all autobiography, 'Friends, Lovers, And The Big Terrible Thing', a book that came out just last year and shed light on the darkness that pervaded his life.
In 2019, a critical juncture arose when Perry's addiction culminated in a near-fatal incident. His colon ruptured due to the abuse of opioids, leaving him with only a two percent chance of surviving the night. Against all odds, Perry pulled through, but he was faced with the arduous reality of living with a colostomy bag for the following nine months.
A mere two years later, Perry's battle with addiction plunged him into another harrowing ordeal during his stay at a rehabilitation facility in Switzerland, an experience he narrated in his memoir.
Doctors administered a sedative that, when combined with the opioids in his system, caused his heart to stop beating. While medical professionals successfully revived him, the resuscitation came at a cost, resulting in eight broken ribs and a heart-wrenching forfeiture of a movie role alongside the legendary Meryl Streep.
Behind the laughter: The 'Friends' years
Perry's on-screen portrayal as the witty and lovable Chandler Bing in 'Friends' stood in stark contrast to his off-screen struggles. The role catapulted him to stardom and fame, with earnings that reached around $1 million per episode.
However, it was a double-edged sword, and the steep price of fame became evident in his profound struggle with addiction.
The roots of Perry's addiction delved deep into his formative years, where he began experimenting with beer and inexpensive wine at a mere 14 years old.
This descent into the world of substance abuse was exacerbated as he pursued his childhood dream of stardom in Los Angeles, appearing in multiple television shows before his breakthrough role in 'Friends'.
Despite the apparent camaraderie among the six-member regular cast of the iconic show, Perry confessed that he found filming to be a highly stressful experience.
"I felt like I was gonna die if the live audience didn't laugh," he divulged on the reunion show in 2021. "And I would sweat and just, like, go into convulsions. I felt like that every single night."
The extraordinary success of the show was both a blessing and a curse, with the relentless paparazzi scrutiny of six relatively unknown actors propelling them into the public eye. This exacerbated Perry's already heavy drinking habits and added to his challenges.
The actor developed an addiction to Vicodin, a powerful painkiller he initially began taking following a jet-ski accident. What began as moderate use spiraled into an addiction that saw him consuming around 55 tablets a day by the end of the third season.
Matthew Perry's relentless search for relief
The quest for more pills transformed into a "full-time job," involving making calls, visiting doctors, feigning migraines, and even securing illicit sources. Perry emphasized that his intent was not to feel high or euphoric but to simply escape into a state of numbness, far removed from the debilitating struggles he was enduring.
It was a desperate means to cope with the weight of addiction that no longer offered any pleasure, confessing, "I just wanted to sit on my couch, take five Vicodin, and watch a movie. That was heaven for me. It no longer is."
The depths of his addiction manifested in alarming ways, as he admitted to sneaking into American estate agents' "open houses" to pilfer pills from their medicine cabinets, revealing the desperate lengths he went to satisfy his craving.
In 1995, a former girlfriend, who remained a friend, insisted that he seek professional help for his deepening addictions. This marked the beginning of a recurring cycle of stints in rehabilitation.
"Addiction wakes up before you do, and it wants you alone," he said in his memoir, adding, "As soon as you raise your hand and say: 'I'm having a problem,' alcohol sneers: 'You're gonna say something about it? Fine, I'll go away for a while. But I'll be back.' It never goes away for good."
Perry's resilience, despite the relentless grip of addiction, was partly attributed to the unwavering support he received from his inseparable co-stars on 'Friends'. Their bond transcended the screen, with the cast sharing every meal and playing poker between takes.
Perry described their support as akin to penguins caring for a sick comrade until he could stand on his own. "They were understanding and they were patient," he said in an interview with People magazine last year.
He added, "It's like penguins. When one is sick, the other penguins surround it and prop it up until that penguin can walk on its own. That's kind of what the cast did for me."
Happiness remains elusive for Matthew Perry
Despite his ongoing battles, Perry continued to secure various roles in both movies and television following the final season of 'Friends' in May 2004.
His portrayal of Chandler Bing remains one of his most enduring legacies, as the character shared a profound connection with the actor himself.
Perry once explained that both he and Chandler used humor as a coping mechanism for their insecurities, and they shared a common struggle with relationship anxieties and self-sabotaging behavior.
However, a fundamental difference emerged: while Chandler found happiness by marrying Monica and adopting their twins in the series, Perry grappled with personal relationships marred by addiction.
His romances with several actresses, including Neve Campbell, Heather Graham, and Yasmine Bleeth, were fleeting, and it seemed that true happiness eluded him.
In November 2020, Perry proposed to literary agent Molly Hurwitz, his girlfriend of two years, offering a glimmer of hope for a brighter future. However, the relationship met a tragic end just seven months later, with a close friend of Hurwitz revealing concerns about Perry potentially relapsing.
"You can only help someone so much. He is in a really dark place and pals fear he may have relapsed," they told In Touch magazine.
Matthew Perry's journey was one that oscillated between stellar success and the insidious grip of addiction. The world remembers him as Chandler Bing, a character who brought joy to millions, while mourning the man who couldn't find it for himself.