The Untold Truth Of Matthew Perry

Matthew Perry had a number of high-profile relationships after he became a household name, but the TV star never married. In November 2020, he proposed to literary manager Molly Hurwitz. "I decided to get engaged," he told People after breaking the news. "Luckily, I happened to be dating the greatest woman on the face of the planet at this time." Perry and Hurwitz's relationship began in 2018.

The relationship timeline had its rocky moments. In May 2020, In Touch reported that the two had called it quits. "It happened very recently," a source revealed. "It was very amicable, but they have both decided to go their separate ways." And while they did get engaged six months later, it did not stick. In June 2021, Perry confirmed in a statement provided to People that he and Hurwitz had called off their engagement. "Sometimes things just don't work out and this is one of them," he said. "I wish Molly the best."

"Friends" had a number of high-profile guest stars, including Oscar winner Julia Roberts. And what a lot of people might not know is that Matthew Perry was pretty much responsible for getting the "Pretty Woman" actor on the show. Roberts appeared in Season 2 episode "The One After the Superbowl." The two-part episode, which aired after Super Bowl XXX, raked in 52.9 million viewers. It is the show's most-watched episode. 

As noted by The Hollywood Reporter, Perry asked Roberts to come on the show, and she answered him by saying that if he wrote a paper for her about quantum physics, she'd do it. "The following day, I sent her a paper all about wave-particle duality and the uncertainty principle and entanglement, and only some of it was metaphorical," he wrote in his 2022 memoir, "Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing." "Not only did Julia agree to do the show, but she also sent me a gift: bagels — lots and lots of bagels. Sure, why not? It was Julia f***ing Roberts."

Speaking of science, it sounds like the two had real-deal chemistry: Perry and Roberts began dating in 1995. However, Perry's own insecurities got the better of him, and he ended up calling things off with the movie star in 1996. "I had been constantly certain that she was going to break up with me — why would she not? I was not enough; I could never be enough; I was broken, bent, unlovable," he wrote. 

While you may not believe it, as  his character in "Friends" is very physically unmotivated (just think of Chandler Bing trying to get a couch up a flight of stairs), Matthew Perry was a very gifted athlete. The TV star committed himself to the game of tennis at an early age. When he was in his teen years, he was nationally ranked in his home country of Canada. 

So what stopped Perry from being the next Roger Federer? Well to put it bluntly, moving to the United States made Perry realize that he didn't have what it took to make it big in the tennis world. "I was a very good tennis player in Ottawa, Canada — nationally ranked when I was, like, 13. Then I moved to Los Angeles when I was 15, and everyone in L.A. just killed me," Perry told Men's Health. "I was pretty great in Canada. Not so much in Los Angeles. It was insane." 

Shortly after Perry's realization, he figured that he needed to try another career path, so he turned to acting. His competitive nature fit the world of acting quite well, and as we all know, Perry made sitcom history from there.

Helping others deal with their own addiction was near and dear to Matthew Perry, and he even jumped into the political world to amplify his cause. As noted by the National Association of Drug Court Professionals (NADCP), Perry was joined by NADCP's CEO, West Huddleston, as well as other NADCP board members in Washington, D.C., where they met with members of Congress to discuss drug court funding in 2011. The group, including Perry, met with the House Appropriations Committee to advance the support for the drug courts, and pushed the committee to consider an $86 million budget. 

In pure Chandler Bing fashion, Perry cracked a couple jokes while speaking on the issue, but given the subject matter, he got to the seriousness of the topic fairly quickly. "I'm here, of course, to talk about Drug Courts because they save money. They save lives. They save prison space. They save families. They save veterans," he declared. "Drug Courts are a proven budget solution. This is why it is critical that Congress fund Drug Courts at a minimum of $86 million."

In May 2021, the "Friends" reunion hit HBO Max. All six members of the beloved sitcom's main cast got back together to look back on the show that without question changed all of their lives. Now, as much as fans may have loved this reunion, and as much as fans may have clamored for an actual revival series, Matthew Perry made it clear he was not into the idea of bringing back the sitcom's characters for some sort of reboot. "It would be terrible to do something and have it not be good," he told ABC News in 2013. "It was so terrific. If we did a movie and it sucked, then it would, you know, blemish it." 

Despite his lack of interest in a "Friends" revival or reboot, Perry still channeled his inner Chandler Bing from time to time. On Instagram, Perry regularly posted about his iconic character, whether he poked fun at Chandler's hilarious dance moves, posted montages of some of his classic looks from the show, and even shared a photo of the drop-dead hysterical bunny costume. It's safe to say that Perry had a huge appreciation for his character and the show. No wonder he wanted to leave it be.

True crime fans, prepare yourselves: Matthew Perry was the stepson of renowned journalist and "Dateline" correspondent Keith Morrison. In a 2020 chat with People, Morrison, who married Perry's mom in 1981, gushed about his stepson. He's one of those people who always is the center of the room for a reason and it was so as a kid," Morrison shared. "He's an intense, talented, focused character. He's very bright. That was always the case as he was growing up." 

Morrison also pointed to Perry's athletic career — both in hockey and in tennis — as examples of his determination from a young age. Calling his stepson "talented" and "smart," Morrison continued by saying that he was not at all shocked that Perry landed his role in "Friends." "Him being selected for a role like that does not surprise me one bit," he revealed. "It matched his particular sense of humor precisely. That character is Matthew."

On an episode of "Watch What Happens Live," Morrison told host Andy Cohen that Perry is "a good guy" who also had an incredibly generous side. "He gave me a car," Morrison shared. The "Dateline" host also said he visited Perry on the "Friends" set a number of times. 

It seems like every actor has to pay their dues at some point in their early career, and Matthew Perry was no exception. Perry suffered a number of setbacks in his early acting years, with a couple of failed shows under his belt. 

Perry's first sitcom appearance was in 1987 in the aforementioned show "Second Chance." It was about a man, played by Kiel Martin, who dies and gets the opportunity to come back and coach his younger self. Perry played the younger version of Martin's character. The show was not a hit, so it was reworked and renamed "Boys Will Be Boys." The new version of the series, which followed Perry's character and ditched the whole death element, didn't stick either. 

After that, Perry did a couple of guest roles on shows including "Growing Pains," and then tried to go for sitcom success again with the show "Home Free" — but the show was canceled after a few months. Before arriving at success with "Friends," Perry was also tied to the show "LAX 2194," which never made it to the screen.

Matthew Perry was prescribed addictive medications from the time he was very young. The actor said that one of his first experiences with an addictive drug took place when he was just a few weeks old. 

In his 2022 memoir, "Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing," the actor explained that he had been a colicky baby who would cry for hours on end. His parents, who were understandably desperate, took him to the pediatrician's office to see if there was anything that could be done. At this point, Perry wrote that the doctor prescribed him the heavy sedative, phenobarbital, to help him stop crying. According to the NIH, "Phenobarbital is a class C-IV control substance, and it is used for its sedative and anti-seizure properties in patients with status epileptics and alcohol withdrawal management. It is known for being highly addictive."

Sadly, phenobarbital seemed to have an intense impact on Perry during the first few weeks of his life. As he would later write in his memoir, "Apparently, I'd be crying, and the drug would hit, and I'd be knocked out, and this would cause my father to erupt in laughter." He went on to add, "There are baby pictures of me where you can tell I'm just completely f***ing zonked, nodding like an addict at the age of seven weeks." He also noted that he didn't fault his parents for medicating him. "It was a different time," he wrote.

When Matthew Perry was growing up, his misbehavior stemmed beyond just smoking and cracking jokes in class. The Canadian-American television star also got into a schoolyard fight or two — and once he even went up against future prime minister Justin Trudeau. At the time of this altercation, Trudeau's father, Pierre Trudeau, was the prime minister of Canada, and Perry's mother, Suzanne Morrison, was the press secretary under his administration. Unfortunately, though, this unique link did little to help the two boys get along.

As Perry later recounted in his memoir, "Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing," "I beat up Pierre's son (an eventual prime minister himself) Justin Trudeau." He went on to cheekily add, "I decided to end my argument with [Trudeau] when he was put in charge of an entire army."

Whatever bad blood existed between Perry and Trudeau, however, eventually became water under the bridge. Shortly after Perry died on October 28, 2023, the Canadian prime minister took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to mourn the loss of his former classmate. "Matthew Perry's passing is shocking and saddening," Trudeau wrote. "I'll never forget the schoolyard games we used to play, and I know people around the world are never going to forget the joy he brought them. Thanks for all the laughs, Matthew. You were loved — and you will be missed." 

By the time that River Phoenix died, Matthew Perry was already drinking fairly regularly. As the actor revealed in his memoir, "Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing," 1993 saw him misusing alcohol on a daily basis. And, when he did eventually try to get sober, Matthew struggled immensely.

Commenting on this in his book, the television personality noted the way that his own father, John Bennett Perry, had managed to achieve sobriety with relative ease. The actor recalled, "He went for a walk and quit drinking and hasn't had a drop since." For Matthew, this was not only shocking but also unfathomable. Compared to his own struggle, his father's story of sobriety seemed almost like a fairy tale. 

As Matthew would later write, "Excuse me? You went for a walk and quit drinking? I have spent upward of $7 million trying to get sober. I have been to six thousand AA meetings. (Not an exaggeration, more an educated guess). I've been to rehab 15 times. I've been in a mental institution, gone to therapy twice a week for thirty years, been to death's door. And you went for a f***ing walk?"

If you or anyone you know is struggling with addiction issues, help is available. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).