Fans all over the world are mourning the loss of famous Hollywood actor Matthew Perry passed away on October 28, at his home in Los Angeles.
The 54-year-old best known for his iconic role as ‘Chandler Bing’ on the ‘Friends’ show was found unresponsive in a Jacuzzi. The cause of his death remains unknown as investigations carry on.
Matthew Langford Perry was a Canadian and American actor born in Massachusetts, on August 19, 1969 to a Canadian journalist mother, Suzanne Marie Morrison and an American actor and former model father, John Bennett Perry.
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At 15 years old, Perry studied acting at Buckley School, a college-preparatory school in Sherman Oaks, Los Angeles, and graduated in 1987. His first credited role was a small part in ‘240-Robert’ in 1979 as a child actor and shortly after moving to Los Angeles, he began auditioning for roles, making guest roles in several films and TV series.
Breakthrough with ‘Friends’ series
In 1994, Perry was casted as ‘Chandler Bing’ in the ‘Friends’ series and was the youngest member of the main cast at age 24. ‘Friends’ series was hugely successful and made Perry an international celebrity. By 2002, he and his co-stars Jennifer Aniston casted as ‘Rachel’ , Courteney Cox known as ‘Monica’, Lisa Kudrow casted as ‘Phoebe’, Matt LeBlanc as ‘Joey’, and David Schwimmer casted as ‘Ross’ were making $1 million per episode.
The program earned him an Emmy nomination in 2002 for the’ Outstanding Lead Actor’ in a Comedy Series award. The series went through from 1994-2004. The series reunion released in 2021 had the main casts reunite and reminisce about their time filming it and the bond they formed over the years while also talking about what made the show special.
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After his breakthrough, the actor starred in several dramas, comedies and TV series including ‘The End of Longing’, ‘The Ron Clark Story’, ‘Numb’, ‘Birds of America’, ‘The good wife’ and ‘The Odd Couple’.
The actor never married or had any children; however he was once engaged to literary manager Molly Hurwitz, with their engagement ending in 2021.
In July 2011, Perry lobbied the US Congress as a celebrity spokesperson for the National Association of Drug Court Professionals in support of funding for drug courts. He received a Champion of Recovery award in May 2013 from the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy for opening Perry House, a rehab center in his former mansion in Malibu, California.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Perry launched an apparel line inspired by 'Friends', with proceeds donated to the World Health Organization's COVID-19 relief fund.
Awards and nominations
He was nominated for ‘Best Actor’ at Golden Globe Awards, Outstanding Lead Actor in Comedy Series, movie, Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series, Outstanding Variety Special at Primetime Emmy Awards. In 1996, he won ‘Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in Friends Series’ at Screen Actors Guild Awards. Perry also won ‘Best Global Actor in a Television Series’ and ‘Editor’s Choice’ at Huading Awards and TV Guide Awards respectively, among others.