Just days after Matthew Perry’s death, “Friends” creators Marta Kauffman and David Crane opened up exclusively to TODAY about the last time they spoke with the actor.
Perry died at age 54 Saturday, Oct. 28, after an apparent drowning at his California home, according to police. His official cause of death is pending the coroner’s investigation.
The actor was well known for his role as Chandler Bing on the hit sitcom “Friends,” which ran for 10 seasons from 1994 to 2004.
Kauffman tells Hoda Kotb in an interview that will air in full Wednesday, Nov. 1, that she spoke to Perry just two weeks before his death, and that it was an upbeat conversation.
“It was great,” Kauffman tells Kotb. “He was happy and chipper. He didn’t seem weighed down by anything. He was in a really good place, which is why this seems so unfair.”
The primary cast of “Friends,” which followed six friends in New York City, consists of Jennifer Aniston, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, David Schwimmer, Courteney Cox and Perry. The surviving five cast members spoke out Oct. 30 in a collective statement, in which they said they are “utterly devastated.”
“We were more than just cast mates. We are a family,” the statement reads. “There is so much to say, but right now we’re going to take a moment to grieve and process this unfathomable loss.”
“In time we will say more, as and when we are able,” the statement continues. “For now, our thoughts and our love are with Matty’s family, his friends, and everyone who loved him around the world.”
Perry was outspoken about his struggles with drug and alcohol addiction. Just one year prior to his death, in November 2022, he published his memoir, “Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing,” in which he was particularly candid about his experiences. In it, he said he spent up to $7 million trying to get sober, had been to rehab 15 times and was in a coma in 2019 after his colon erupted.
“I never gave up, I never raised my hands and said, ‘That’s enough, I can’t take it anymore, you win,’” Perry wrote. “And because of that, I stand tall now, ready for what comes next.”