Lauren Graham reflects on boyfriend Matthew Perry’s ‘really happy year’ leading up to his death at 54 and says it was ‘such a joy to be around him’
Lauren Graham said Matthew Perry had a “very happy year” ahead of his sudden death in October.
The Gilmore Girls alum, 56, appeared on a CBS mornings segment on Thursday, where she spoke about the Friends star, who died at the age of 54.
“This past year he was so proud of the book he wrote and how many people it touched,” she shared, referring to Perry’s 2022 memoir, Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing.
“It was a success that gave him a level of happiness that I hadn’t seen from him in a long time, so that’s a nice memory.”
“That’s something to be grateful for, and again, the book really meant something to him, so it was a very happy year for him.”
Reflective: Lauren Graham, 56, said her boyfriend Matthew Perry had a “very happy year” leading up to his sudden death in October at age 54; they can be seen in 2008
The actress added that she is “still in shock” over Perry’s death.
‘I’m still in shock. I mean, it’s a very tragic loss and he leaves behind his beautiful work,” she said.
Looking back on their friendship, she concluded, “Nobody made me laugh that hard. Just tears, flowing. It was such a joy to be around him and be his friend.”
Graham and Perry first worked together in Aaron Sorkin’s series Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip in 2006.
They had a role in the 2008 film Birds of America and later reunited for an episode of Perry’s The Odd Couple, which ran from 2015 to 2017.
They maintained a close friendship in the following years.
Perry even had a photo of them together in his memoir, captioned, “Me and the beautiful Lauren Graham.”
He previously spoke about their friendship in a fan Q&A for his show The Odd Couple, where he called her “one of my favorite people.”
“We have great chemistry when we work together and it’s fun to work with a good friend,” he added.
Proud: “This past year he was so proud of the book he wrote and how many people it touched,” she shared in a CBS Mornings segment about his memoir on Thursday
Good year: “That’s something to be grateful for, and again, the book really meant something to him, so it was a very happy year for him,” she shared, referring to Perry’s 2022 autobiography, Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing ; the duo seen in 2008
Beautiful memory: “It was a success that gave him a level of happiness that I hadn’t seen in him for a long time, so that’s a beautiful memory,” she said
‘Shocked’: The actress added that she is ‘still in shock’ over Perry’s death: ‘I’m still in shock. I mean, it’s a very tragic loss, and he leaves behind his beautiful work.”
Friends and co-stars: Graham and Perry first worked together in the series ‘Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip’ in 2006. They then co-starred in Birds of America (2008), later reuniting for an episode from Perry’s The Odd Couple (pictured), which ran from 2015 to 2017
Graham also discussed their friendship in her own memoir, Talking As Fast As I Can, where she said the pair almost dated at one point.
“The only bright spot, guy-wise, was at an event where I met Matthew Perry. He became my old friend who I almost but never exactly dated, or FWIABNED.”
Perry’s tragic death occurred on October 28, when he was discovered underwater in his home’s hot tub by his assistant, who had briefly left his home to retrieve some items for him.
Earlier this month, Perry’s death certificate was released. Although the actor is believed to have died from accidental drowning, his cause of death has so far been postponed pending the results of a toxicology report.
According to police, only medications for which Perry had a prescription were found in his home, but the actor had previously been open about his years-long battle with addiction and drug abuse.
Perry was buried on November 3 during a simple one-hour service at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Los Angeles, in a ceremony attended by his Friends costars.
Perry had reportedly played a two-hour game of Pickleball – a sport similar to tennis but played on a smaller court – earlier on the day of his death before sending his assistant out on an errand. When they returned, Perry was found lifeless in his hot tub.
His body was recovered from his home by the LA County Medical Examiner’s Office hours after his death.
The star exposed the culmination of his terrible battle with drug and alcohol addiction in his memoir, Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing.
His book: The star exposed the culmination of his terrible battle with drug and alcohol addiction in his memoir, Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing
Gone too soon: Perry’s tragic death occurred on October 28, when he was discovered underwater in his home’s hot tub by his assistant; he is seen in 2016
Postponed: His death certificate was released earlier this month. Although the actor is believed to have died from accidental drowning, his cause of death has so far been postponed pending the results of a toxicology report; he is pictured in April 2023
Perry also revealed that his colon ruptured as a result of his opioid addiction when he was 49.
The doctors gave him only a two percent chance of survival and he was in a coma for two weeks, followed by another month in the hospital.
Perry required fourteen surgeries to repair all the abdominal damage, and he admitted to going to rehab fifteen times over the years in hopes of kicking his drug addiction.
Perry famously starred as Chandler Bing in the hit sitcom Friends, alongside Jennifer Aniston as Rachel, Courtney Cox as Monica, Matt LeBlanc as Joey, Lisa Kudrow as Phoebe and David Schwimmer as Ross. The show ran from 1994 to 2004 and lasted ten seasons.
The actor has never married and ended his engagement to Molly Hurwitz, a talent manager, in 2021.
He dated several famous actresses, including Julia Roberts and Lizzy Caplan.