Matthew Perry’s Childhood Friends Recall His Final Days – NBC New York

Before Matthew Perry’s death In October 2023, the troubled actor seemed to be enjoying new energy and a zest for life, according to two men closest to him.

Two of the “Friends” star’s friends, brothers Brian and Chris Murray, sat down exclusively with TODAY’s Savannah Guthrie and talked about Perry’s senior year and how uplifted they were by what they saw in him.

“He was absolutely on track,” Brian Murray said. “He wrote. He read scripts. He wanted to direct. The book had just galvanized him into action and he was ready to really get back into the business. This is one of the greatest tragedies.”

Perry’s death seemed to reflect his own predictions.

“If I died suddenly, people would be shocked, but few would be surprised.” – the 54-year-old once remarkedaccording to him stepfather, “Dateline” correspondent Keith Morrison.

When it came to his topic, Perry had an open mind many years of fighting against drug and alcohol abuse. He was in and out of rehab 15 times according to his own assessment$9 million for trying to get sober.

Nevertheless, in interviews, his loved ones claimed that he had pulled himself together after the 2022 release of his memoir “Friends, Lovers and the Big Scary Thing.”

“He seemed to be a lot better. He seemed more balanced,” Morrison told Savannah in an interview.

This reflects what “Friends” creator Marta Kauffman told Hoda Kotb on TODAY last year.

“He was happy and cheerful,” she said of Perry before his death. “He didn’t seem overwhelmed by anything. He was in a really good place and that’s why it seems so unfair.

According to Chris Murray, in this final phase, Perry showed a passion that he had lacked for some time.

“It was really, ‘Let’s do it.’ Let’s do it,” he recalls. “And it even went beyond work, you know?” Just (when) we were talking about traveling and things like that. He did these bigger trips. We were in France together for three weeks. We saw him in New York during the US Open.

When they learned of his death, the moment left them stunned.

“Shocked would be the right word” – Brian Murray who now serves on the board the new Matthew Perry Canadian Foundation, Savannah said. “His trajectory was exactly where it needed to be. He was traveling. Every day he couldn’t wait to wake up. And that’s where the shock lies.”

Perry died on October 28, 2023 at the age of 54. He was found in a hot tub at his home in Los Angeles. According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office, the actor died due to the acute effects of ketamine.

Perry was looking for supervised persons ketamine therapy – Which which he also wrote about in his memoirs — to treat anxiety and depression. However, according to prosecutors, the cause of death caused by an accidental overdose was unsupervised use of the drug.

Five people were there, including Perry’s assistant and a drug dealer charged in connection with his death– the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California reported in August.

Brian and Chris Murray, who knew Perry since elementary school, called Perry’s loss “tragic” and “wildly disappointing.”

The friends’ banter informed Perry’s “Friends” character, Chandler Bing, and how he was known for turning statements into questions.

“We didn’t expect the world to start talking like that,” said Chris Murray.

“We still say that,” Brian said.

In their sadness, they say what they miss most is laughing with Perry.

“The funniest guy I’ve ever met,” Brian Murphy said.

This article first appeared TODAY.com. Read more from TODAY here: