{"id":63039,"date":"2023-12-19T21:48:03","date_gmt":"2023-12-19T21:48:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2023\/12\/19\/george-clooney-reflects-on-relationship-with-late-matthew-perry\/"},"modified":"2023-12-19T21:48:03","modified_gmt":"2023-12-19T21:48:03","slug":"george-clooney-reflects-on-relationship-with-late-matthew-perry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2023\/12\/19\/george-clooney-reflects-on-relationship-with-late-matthew-perry\/","title":{"rendered":"George Clooney Reflects on Relationship With Late Matthew Perry"},"content":{"rendered":"


\n<\/p>\n

\n

George Clooney<\/strong><\/a> remembers being \u201creally close\u201d with the Friends<\/em><\/a> cast, including the late Matthew Perry<\/a>, when they were both on hit NBC shows together.<\/p>\n

\u201cI knew Matt when he was 16 years old. We used to play paddle tennis together,\u201d Clooney, 62, told Deadline<\/a> in an interview published on Tuesday, December 19. \u201cHe\u2019s about 10 years younger than me. And he was a great, funny, funny, funny kid.\u201d<\/p>\n

Clooney recalled how badly Perry wanted to get cast as a regular on a TV show.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll he would say to us \u2014 I mean me, [actor] Richard Kind<\/strong> and [filmmaker] Grant Heslov<\/strong> \u2014 was, \u2018I just want to get on a sitcom, man. I just want to get on a regular sitcom, and I would be the happiest man on earth.\u2019 And he got on probably one of the best ever,\u201d Clooney recalled, noting that even though Perry nabbed a starring role as Chandler Bing on Friends<\/em>, the late star \u201cwasn\u2019t happy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\n
<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

\n\t\t\tRelated: <\/span>Celebrity Deaths in 2023: Stars We’ve Lost<\/a>
\n\t\t<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\n\t\t\tAfter losing beloved stars including Barbara Walters, Kirstie Alley and Stephen \u201ctWitch\u201d Boss in the final days of 2022, the entertainment industry continued to deal with loss in 2023. Hollywood was dealt a devastating blow with three significant losses in April: Jerry Springer, Harry Belafonte and Dancing With the Stars judge Len Goodman all died [\u2026]\t\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Because both ER<\/em> and Friends<\/em> were filmed \u201cside by side\u201d on the same NBC soundstage, Clooney had a lot of face time with Perry while they were on their respective sets. ER<\/em> aired from 1994 to 2009 while Friends<\/em> aired from 1994 to 2004. (Clooney also made a surprise appearance on one episode of Friends<\/em> in 1995.)<\/p>\n

\u201cIt didn\u2019t bring him joy or happiness or peace. And watching that go on on the lot \u2014 we were at Warner Brothers, we were there right next to each other \u2014 it was hard to watch because we didn\u2019t know what was going through him,\u201d Clooney explained, referring to Perry\u2019s addiction struggles<\/a>. \u201cWe just knew that he wasn\u2019t happy and I had no idea he was doing what, 12 Vicodin a day and all the stuff he talked about, all that heartbreaking stuff.\u201d<\/p>\n

Clooney alluded to Perry\u2019s story being a lesson.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt also just tells you that success and money and all those things, it doesn\u2019t just automatically bring you happiness,\u201d he explained. \u201cYou have to be happy with yourself and your life.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n
\"George<\/div>

\n Mark Wahlberg, Matthew Perry, Salma Hayek, George Clooney & Dylan McDermott, 1998.<\/span> Jeff Kravitz\/FilmMagic, Inc<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Perry died<\/a> on October 28 at age 54. Police officers responding to a call for a cardiac arrest found the actor unresponsive in the hot tub at his Los Angeles home. Initially, Perry\u2019s cause of death was \u201cdeferred\u201d<\/a> pending a toxicology report. On December 15, the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner\u2019s report revealed<\/a> that Perry had died from \u201cthe acute effects of ketamine.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\n
\"Matthew<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

\n\t\t\tRelated: <\/span>Matthew Perry and Courteney Cox Over the Years: ‘Friends’ and Beyond<\/a>
\n\t\t<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\n\t\t\tMatthew Perry and Courteney Cox\u2019s chemistry as Chandler Bing and Monica Geller on Friends was so strong that many fans wondered if the actors had an offscreen romantic connection. Despite falling in love and getting married on the NBC sitcom, Perry and Cox\u2019s real-world relationship was always platonic. In fact, Perry and Cox gave fans [\u2026]\t\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Prior to his passing, Perry wrote about taking ketamine<\/a> \u201cto ease pain and help with depression,\u201d in his Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing<\/em> memoir, which was released late last year.<\/p>\n

\n
\n