Courteney Cox surprised Matthew Perry with a kiss during Jay Leno interview: "Call me tonight..."
Matthew Perry described his first impression of Courteney Cox as "cripplingly beautiful" in his 2022 memoir 'Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing.' The pair immortalized the roles of Chandler Bing and Monica Geller on 'Friends' and thus began a lifelong friendship. However, fans fantasized Perry and Cox as romantic partners, and when the latter shared an impromptu passionate kiss with her co-star during a 1997 Jay Leno interview, rumor mills started buzzing. As per The Things, Perry was promoting his latest mushy film 'Fools Rush In' as a must-see during Valentine's weekend. "This movie is just a really romantic, beautiful you know. It is all about destiny and the fact that there's somebody there for everybody," he gushed.
Perry then went on to make a bold statement, "Girls could just kind of turn their heads, and now I will just talk to the guys. Just for a second, it's Valentine's Day, so guys if you take a girl to this movie you're going to have sex with her that night," he boasted while Leno blushed in the corner. Right at that moment, Cox walked in and caught Perry by surprise. "I can feel the sexual tension, yeah," Leno teased, sensing a palpable connection between the two. "Matthew, you know I just saw the movie," the 'Scream' actress revealed without taking her eyes off Perry. Before the '17 Again' actor could react, Cox swooped, gave him a tight hug, and locked his lips in a steamy kiss.
"Call me tonight. Okay, before work tomorrow," Cox signed off before leaving her shy co-star awestruck. He responded by saying he would call her for sure. "Hey I saw the movie," Leno exclaimed. Perry joked, "See now that kind of thing doesn't happen every day... no that is one guarantee."
'The Longest Yard' actress also shared a nostalgic tribute for her close friend after his tragic death in 2023: "When you work with someone as closely as I did with Matthew, there are thousands of moments I wish I could share. For now, here’s one of my favorites," she wrote in the caption alongside a clip from 'Friends'. Cox then went on to narrate the scene where "Chandler and Monica were supposed to have a one night fling" but it turned into the beginning of their on-screen love story.
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As per The Hollywood Reporter, last year, Cox shared with CBS' 'Sunday Morning' that Perry often visited her "in spirit." She disclosed that she felt a deep connection with his soul and that their relationship had transcended death. “He visits me a lot if we believe in that,” she revealed. “I talk to my mom, my dad, Matthew. I feel like there are a lot of people that are…I think they guide us.” She added that on plenty of occasions, she sensed his spirit “around for sure.” She also recalled that he was a kind, sincere person who, regrettably, suffered greatly throughout his life as a result of his addictions.
Cox married David Arquette in 1999; the two met on the sets of the horror flick 'Scream'. They divorced in 2013 and share a daughter, Coco, who was born in 2004. The 'Friends' alum is currently in a relationship with Irish musician Johnny McDaid; they were briefly engaged in 2014 but soon broke it off without separating.