Jennifer Aniston has given her first interview since the passing of her Friends co-star, Matthew Perry.
Speaking to Variety alongside her Morning Wars co-star Reese Witherspoon, Aniston started to cry when addressing the death of her friend. The writer described that "Witherspoon immediately grabs Aniston’s hand, and doesn’t let go for the rest of the conversation."
The Friends actor was asked how she hopes people remember Perry.
"As he said he’d love to be remembered. He was happy. He was healthy," Aniston replied.
"He had quit smoking. He was getting in shape. He was happy — that’s all I know. I was literally texting with him that morning, funny Matty. He was not in pain. He wasn’t struggling. He was happy."
At this point, Witherspoon interjected with, "It’s important people know that."
"It is. I want people to know he was really healthy, and getting healthy," Aniston continued.
"He was on a pursuit. He worked so hard. He really was dealt a tough one. I miss him dearly. We all do. Boy, he made us laugh really hard."
To this point, Witherspoon shed more light on the dynamics between the Friends cast, which included Aniston, Perry, David Schwimmer, Courteney Cox, Matt LeBlanc, and Lisa Kudrow.
"You all were so close. It’s incredible what was born of those friendships, and how you guys have always taken care of each other for years and years. It’s really beautiful and set standards for our business, as well, with the way you respected each other," she said.
Aniston went on to speak about Perry's game-changing role as Chandler Bing.
"I also have to say I think Matthew Perry’s dialect, his way of speaking, created a whole different world," she said.
"We went with his lead, in a way. It just added something to our joy."
Perry died at the age of 54 on October 28, 2023, after he was found unresponsive in his hot tub. Following the news of his death, Aniston shared a tribute on Instagram.
"Having to say goodbye to our Matty has been an insane wave of emotions that I’ve never experienced before... we loved him deeply. He was such a part of our DNA. We were always the six of us," she wrote.
"In the last couple of weeks, I’ve been poring over our texts to one another. Laughing and crying then laughing again. I’ll keep them forever and ever. I found one text that he sent me out of nowhere one day. It says it all."
The shared text from Perry to Aniston read: "Making you laugh just made my day. It made my day."
Feature image: NBC.
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