One year after Matthew Perry’s death, ‘Friends’ star’s family speaks out about his presumed relapse: ‘It was a worry’

Friends celebrates its 30th anniversary this year, but for those who were closest Matthew Perrythere is a much grimmer milestone that needs to be addressed. A year has passed since the actor died on October 28, 2023, at the age of 54, he drowned in a hot tub due to a high dose of ketamine. On the anniversary of his death, Perry’s family spoke openly about his possible relapse and concerns about his sobriety.

Matthew Perry’s mother, Suzanne, stepfather Keith Morrison, and three sisters all sat down to talk Today’s program to deliver a speech on the anniversary of the actor’s death, and even a year later, it seems the family still has questions. It was believed that he was sober for 19 months at the time of his death and when Savannah Guthrie asked the family if it seemed like he was still on that path, Morrison said, “It seemed like he was,” while Perry’s mother shook her head no. The NBC Data Line the correspondent continued:

Not for you? It certainly seemed that way to me. He was treated with ketamine, but it didn’t escalate into something he couldn’t control. Although, you know, he was a guy who made decisions: “I can handle it. I can do it. I can tell you what is right. I know the entire system inside out. I know what this drug will do to me. So the worry was, what is he really doing?

Matthew Perry was undergoing ketamine therapy, but due to the date of his last treatment and a large amount detected in his body at the time of his death, an autopsy showed that therapy could not have been the cause of his death. Perry’s assistant has since created A timeline of Perry’s final dayswhich included two doses of ketamine on the day of his death.

Matthew Perry’s mother and stepfather’s worry about a possible relapse probably never went away, and perhaps they weren’t the only ones Perry was hiding his problems from. The actor’s sister Madeline Morrison said:

I don’t even know if he’s had a relapse in his mind.

The entire family seemed to agree with this opinion. Despite this, Suzanne Morrison indicated that after an interaction she had with her son shortly before his death, she felt something was wrong. She recalled having a “premonition”, saying:

I think there was something… there was an inevitability of what was going to happen next to him, and he felt it very strongly. But he said, “I’m not afraid anymore.” And that worried me.

Matthew Perry was best known for supplying some Friendsfunniest quotes as chandler bing on one of best comedy series of all time. However, the actor spoke openly about his struggles with addiction, which he wrote about in his memoirs Friends, lovers and a big scary thing that he I hoped we would be remembered for helping people.

His family is supporting this effort, announcing the creation of the Matthew Perry Foundation of Canada on the anniversary of his death. This, of course, does not ease the pain, as Suzanne Morisson stated that she misses her son with every breath:

Even now, whenever something funny happens, or I see something funny or funny on the news, or whatever, I go to call him. I have more freedom in my relationship with him now than ever before, and it hits me so hard that he’s not there.

Hopefully, with this new foundation and the work Matthew Perry has done in his life – including telling his story in his memoirs – Friends the actor can still help other people struggling with addiction, as well as their families.