Matthew Perry

**Matthew Langford Perry** (August 19, 1969 – October 28, 2023) was an American (and Canadian) actor best known for his role as Chandler Bing on the popular series, *Friends*. His credits also include *The Ron Clark Story*, *Fools Rush In*, *17 Again*, and more. He plays Oscar Madison on the CBS series, *The Odd Couple*.

## Early life

Matthew Langford Perry was born in Williamstown, Massachusetts on August 19, 1969. His mother, Suzanne Marie Morrison (née Langford), is a Canadian journalist and former press secretary to Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau. His father, John Bennett Perry (born 1941), is an American actor and former model. His parents divorced before his first birthday and his mother subsequently married broadcast journalist Keith Morrison working on *Dateline* (NBC). He was raised by his mother in Ottawa, Ontario, and was enrolled at Rockcliffe Park Public School and Ashbury College. While growing up, he took a keen interest in tennis and became a top-ranked junior player.

## Career

### Early work

When he was 15, Perry moved from Ottawa to Los Angeles to pursue acting and attended The Buckley School in Sherman Oaks, graduating in 1987. He pursued improv comedy at the LA Connection in Sherman Oaks while still in high school.

He went on to play Chazz Russell in the TV series *Second Chance*. After 13 episodes, Second Chance became *Boys Will Be Boys*, with the plots refocused on the adventures of Chazz and his teenage friends. After the show's single season, Perry stayed in Los Angeles and made his screen debut in the 1988 film *A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon*. He made a 1989 guest appearance on the series *Growing Pains*, in which he portrayed Carol Seaver's boyfriend who dies from injuries sustained in a drunk-driving accident.

In the midst of his many continuing guest roles on TV, Perry was cast as a regular on the 1990 CBS sitcom *Sydney*, playing the younger brother of Valerie Bertinelli's title character. In 1991, he made a guest appearance on *Beverly Hills, 90210* as Roger Azarian. Perry landed his next TV starring role on the ABC sitcom *Home Free*, which aired only 11 episodes in the spring of 1993. By then, Perry was making his mark, and was instantly cast in a sitcom pilot titled *LAX 2194*.

### Popular of Chandler Bing on *Friends*

The project was slow to take off, so as a back-up option, he attempted to secure an audition for the pilot *Six of One*, later to be known as *Friends*, by Marta Kauffman and David Crane, both of whom he had worked with on Dream On. However, due to previous commitments to the pilot *LAX 2194*, he was not initially considered for an audition. When he did eventually get a reading, he landed the part of Chandler Bing.

Friends was hugely successful, and Perry, along with his co-stars, gained wide renown among television viewers. The program earned him an Emmy nomination in 2002 for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series, along with Matt LeBlanc, but the two lost to Ray Romano. Perry appeared in films such as *Fools Rush In* (alongside father John Bennett Perry and Salma Hayek), *Almost Heroes*, *Three to Tango*, *The Whole Nine Yards* (alongside Bruce Willis) and its sequel *The Whole Ten Yards*, and *Serving Sara*.

While known primarily for his comic roles, Perry has carved out a career in drama as well, particularly in his portrayal of Associate White House Counsel Joe Quincy in Aaron Sorkin's *The West Wing*. His three appearances in that series (twice in the fourth season and once in the fifth) earned him two Emmy nominations for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series in 2003 and 2004. Perry is referred to in the show prior to his guest appearance - Donna Moss seeks him out (off screen) in the episode "20 Hours in LA." He also appeared as attorney Todd Merrick in two episodes near the end of *Ally McBeal's* five-season run, including a 2-hour special intended to revive the legal comedy-drama.

### Post-*Friends* and sucess

After *Friends* wrapped up, Perry made his directorial debut in an episode of the 4th season of the American comedy-drama *Scrubs*, in which he also guest starred as "Murray Marks", an operator of a small airport's traffic control team. Murray is asked to donate a kidney to his father Gregory (played by Perry's real father).

He starred in the TNT movie, *The Ron Clark Story* which premiered August 13, 2006. Perry played small town teacher Ron Clark who relocates to the toughest class in the country. Perry received a Golden Globe nomination as well as an Emmy nomination for his performance.

In 2006-2007, Perry appeared in Aaron Sorkin's drama *Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip*. Perry played Matt Albie alongside Bradley Whitford's Danny Tripp, a writer-director duo brought in to help save a failing sketch show. Perry's character was considered to be substantially based on Sorkin's own personal experiences, particularly in television.

In 2006, he began filming *Numb*, a film based on a man suffering from depersonalization disorder. The film's tentative release date was pushed back several times, but was finally released to DVD on May 13, 2008. He also appeared in *David Mamet's Sexual Perversity* in Chicago in London. In 2009, he starred in the film *17 Again* playing the older Mike O'Donnell.

In 2008, Perry starred in the offbeat film *Birds of America* as Morrie Tanager, an uptight man who has to deal with his siblings. Showtime passed on a pilot called *The End of Steve*, a dark comedy starring, written and produced by Perry and Peter Tolan.

Perry's new comedy pilot, *Mr. Sunshine*, based on Perry's original idea, was bought by ABC. Perry was set to portray a middle-aged man with an identity crisis. ABC canceled the series after nine episodes.

On March 1, 2012, it was reported that Perry had signed on to star on the NBC comedy pilot *Go On*, written and produced by former *Friends* writer/producer Scott Silveri. The project was picked up to series in May 2012. Perry portrayed Ryan King, a sportscaster who tries to move on after the death of his wife through the help of mandatory therapy sessions. The pilot aired on August 8, 2012 as a "sneak preview" after the 2012 Summer Olympics. The series premiered on September 11, 2012. On October 2, 2012, NBC ordered a full season of 22 episodes. *Go On* was canceled by NBC in May 2013, shortly after the conclusion of its first season.

### *The Good Wife*, *The Odd Couple* and *The Good Fight*

2012, Perry guest-starred on the critically acclaimed CBS drama *The Good Wife*, as attorney Mike Kresteva. In 2013, he reprised his role in the fourth season.

In 2014, Perry made his British TV debut in the one-off comedy program *The Dog Thrower*, which aired on May 1 as part of Sky Arts' *Playhouse Presents*. Perry portrayed "a charismatic man" who enchanted onlookers by throwing his dog in the air. From 2015 to 2017, Perry starred in, co-wrote, and served as executive producer of a reboot sitcom *The Odd Couple* on CBS. Perry played Oscar Madison opposite Thomas Lennon as Felix Unger.

Perry played the lead role in a new production of his play *The End of Longing*, which premiered on February 11, 2016, at the Playhouse Theatre in London. The play transferred Off-Broadway to MCC Theater, which opened on June 5, 2017, with Jennifer Morrison.

In March 2017 Perry again reprised his role as attorney Mike Kresteva, in *The Good Fight*, a sequel show to the CBS drama *The Good Wife*.

## Personal life

Perry held Canadian and American citizenships. He dated Yasmine Bleeth in 1995, Julia Roberts from 1995 to 1996, and Lizzy Caplan from 2006 to 2012.

Perry had an interest in the *Fallout* video game series. In 2009, during an episode of *The Ellen DeGeneres Show*, he presented Ellen DeGeneres with a copy of *Fallout 3*. This gesture led to his involvement with game studio Obsidian Entertainment, who cast him in the subsequent installment of the series, *Fallout: New Vegas*.

In August 2018, it was reported that Perry underwent abdominal surgery to repair a gastrointestinal perforation. He disclosed in a tweet on September 15, 2018, that he spent three months recovering in hospital, suggesting that the surgery had taken place in June 2018.

In November 2020, Perry became engaged to Molly Hurwitz, a literary manager. However, in June 2021, he publicly announced the end of their engagement, telling *People* magazine, "Sometimes things just don't work out and this is one of them. I wish Molly the best."

Politically, Perry described his beliefs as "left of centre".

### Alcohol and drug addiction

Perry became addicted to Vicodin after a jet-ski accident in 1997 and completed a 28-day rehab program that year. His weight fluctuated over the next few years, dropping to 145 pounds (66 kg) due to pancreatitis. He entered rehab in February 2001 for an addiction to Vicodin, methadone, amphetamines, and alcohol. He was filming *Serving Sara* in Texas when he suffered severe stomach pains and flew to Los Angeles to check into Marina del Rey's Daniel Freeman Hospital. Perry estimated he had spent $9 million to get sober. He revealed that due to his addiction issues, he did not remember three years of the time he was acting on *Friends*, between seasons three and six.

In 2011, Perry lobbied Congress as a celebrity spokesperson for the National Association of Drug Court Professionals in support of funding for drug courts. Perry received a Champion of Recovery award in May 2013 from the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy for opening Perry House, a sober living home in his former mansion in Malibu, California. Perry sold the home and shuttered the rehab center in 2015.

### Death

Perry died on October 28, 2023, at age 54 from an apparent drowning in his hot tub at his Los Angeles home.

## External links

* Matthew Perry on Wikipedia
* Matthew Perry on Friends Central