‘Thank you for the best 10 years a person gets to have’: Lisa Kudrow breaks silence in moving tribute to Matthew Perry
15 November 2023, 20:02
Lisa Kudrow has shared a tribute to Matthew Perry - making her the final Friends star to speak out following his death.
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Perry, who played Chandler Bing in the hit US sitcom from 1994-2004, died in his jacuzzi aged 54 in late October, prompting an outpouring of grief from friends, fans and family.
The Friends co-stars released a statement in tribute in the days after Perry's death, but they had yet to speak out individually.
Kudrow, who played Phoebe on the hit show, shared a heartwarming tribute to her former co-star on Wednesday evening, as she wrote on Instagram: “'Shot the pilot, Friends Like Us, got picked up then immediately, we were at the NBC Upfronts. Then…
“You suggested we play poker AND made it so much fun while we initially bonded. Thank you for that.”
She continued: “Thank you for making me laugh so hard at something you said, that my muscles ached, and tears poured down my face EVERY DAY.
“Thank you for your open heart in a six way relationship that required compromise. And a lot of ‘talking’.
“Thank you for showing up at work when you weren’t well and then, being completely brilliant.
“Thank you for being the best 10 years a person gets to have.
“Thank you for trusting me.
“Thank you for all Ii learned about GRACE and LOVE through knowing you.
“Thank you for the time I got to have with you, Matthew.”
Kudrow’s tribute came just hours after her Jennifer Aniston and David Schwimmer shared their own tributes.
Aniston and Schwimmer, who played Rachel and Ross on the show, posted emotional posts within minutes of each other on Wednesday.
Aniston published a screenshot of a conversation she had with Perry, where he sent a photo of them laughing on the Friends set, with the message: "Making you laugh just made my day. It made my day :)"
Read more: Friends actors gather for private funeral to celebrate life of co-star Matthew Perry
She replied: "Awww the first of THOUSANDS of time", followed by several emojis.
Aniston said in an accompanying caption: "Oh boy this one has cut deep... Having to say goodbye to our Matty has been an insane wave of emotions that I've never experienced before. We all experience loss at some point in our lives. Loss of life or loss of love.
"Being able to really SIT in this grief allows you to feel the moments of joy and gratitude for having loved someone that deep. And we loved him deeply. He was such a part of our DNA. We were always the 6 of us.
"This was a chosen family that forever changed the course of who we were and what our path was going to be. For Matty, he KNEW he loved to make people laugh. As he said himself, if he didn't hear the 'laugh' he thought he was going to die. His life literally depended on it. And boy did he succeed in doing just that.
"He made all of us laugh. And laugh hard. In the last couple weeks, I've been pouring 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.
"Matty, I love you so much and I know you are now completely at peace and out of any pain. I talk to you every day… sometimes I can almost hear you saying "could you BE any crazier?"
"Rest little brother. You always made my day."
Schwimmer shared a picture of him with Perry in character, and said: "Matty,
"Thank you for ten incredible years of laughter and creativity.
"I will never forget your impeccable comic timing and delivery. You could take a straight line of dialogue and bend it to your will, resulting in something so entirely original and unexpectedly funny it still astonishes.
"And you had heart. Which you were generous with, and shared with us, so we could create a family out of six strangers.
"This photo is from one of my favorite moments with you. Now it makes me smile and grieve at the same time.
"I imagine you up there, somewhere, in the same white suit, hands in your pockets, looking around—
“Could there BE any more clouds?”
