Courteney Cox Reflects on 'Thousands of Moments' with Her 'Kind' On-Screen Love Matthew Perry

Courteney Cox is remembering the good times with her TV husband Matthew Perry following his death.

In an Instagram tribute on Tuesday, Cox — who played Monica Geller and wed Perry’s Chandler Bing on Friends — reflected on the loss of Perry, who died at age 54 after an apparent drowning at his home in L.A. on Oct. 28. 

“I am so grateful for every moment I had with you Matty and I miss you every day,” she wrote alongside a clip from the hit NBC comedy.

“When you work with someone as closely as I did with Matthew, there are thousands of moments I wish I could share,” she added. “For now here’s one of my favorites.”

In the scene, Ross Geller (David Schwimmer) walks in on Chandler lying in bed. He excitedly shares that he's getting married that day but once he leaves the room, Monica pops up from underneath the sheets and asks if Ross knew she was there.

“To give a little backstory, Chandler and Monica were supposed to have a one night fling in London," Cox explained in her caption. "But because of the audience’s reaction, it became the beginning of their love story. In this scene, before we started rolling, he whispered a funny line for me to say. He often did things like that. He was funny and he was kind. 🤍🕊️”

After closing out their run as one of the most beloved TV couples when the hit ‘90s sitcom concluded in 2004, Cox and Perry remained present in each other’s lives and often reunited — and shared some of those reunions with their fans.

In 2019, Cox posted a selfie on Instagram of herself and Perry, referring to Chandler’s iconic sarcastic tone as she wrote in the caption, “Guess who I had lunch with today....I KNOW!! Could I BE any happier? #realfriends.”

Their former costar Lisa Kudrow — who played Phoebe Buffay on the NBC sitcom — commented on the post, “Lucky lucky. #beautifulpeople.”

Their reunion came after Perry had suffered a gastrointestinal perforation that left him bedridden for three months. A source told PEOPLE at the time that Perry “was very sick when he was hospitalized; his condition was very serious.” 

The pair have shared other sweet moments on social media over the years, from returning to the screen together to celebrating birthdays and poking fun at each other in true Chandler and Monica style.

In 2013, Cox guest starred on Perry's NBC sitcom Go On as a potential love interest for his character. Despite not being the right match, fans loved seeing the former TV couple back on screen together — and the stars loved it, too.

"Some ladies can even make a cemetery look good," Perry wrote on Twitter, sharing a photo from filming with Cox. "Thanks for joining us CC! #GoOn."

She shared a photo from filming, too, as she called Perry her "first box husband," referring to their on-screen love on Friends.

During the pandemic, Cox hopped on the TikTok train as she shared her own take on a viral dance to “Slidegang!” by Lil Jackie — and joked that her dance moves could be making her daughter, Coco Arquette, distance herself.

“Could this be why Coco and Johnny are socially distancing themselves from me?” she captioned the video posted on Instagram and poking fun at quarantine life with Coco and her longtime love Johnny McDaid.

Seemingly confused as to what he had just watched, Perry commented on the video, bringing his classic Chandler sarcasm as he wrote, “Hi honey, what the hell just happened?”

On Perry’s 52nd birthday in 2021, Cox shared a photo with the actor on her Instagram Story, writing, "Happy Birthday to one of the funniest people ‘I KNOW’ ❤️"

The message was a nod to one of Chandler’s most commonly used phrases in the sitcom.

Shortly after the Friends: The Reunion special aired in 2021, Cox shared a health update about Perry to The Sunday Times. 

"He's just struggled for a while. I think he's doing great now," she said.

She also reflected on the comments he made during the HBO Max special, where he admitted that his portrayal of Chandler Bing — and the audience's reaction to his performance — greatly affected his mental health. "For me, I felt like I was going to die if they didn't laugh," Perry shared.

Cox said of her friend’s struggles, "That was a lot of pressure he put on himself. That's a lot to think how much he relied on that for his own self-worth."

PEOPLE's newly expanded Friends special edition issue is celebrating Matthew Perry’s life, humor and the show that made him beloved by millions.

Perry credited Cox, Kudrow and their other Friends castmates — Schwimmer, Jennifer Aniston and Matt LeBlanc — for supporting him as he navigated alcoholism and addiction during the sitcom. 

"They were understanding, and they were patient," he told PEOPLE in 2022. "It's like penguins. In nature, when one is sick or very injured, the other penguins surround it and prop it up and walk around until that penguin can walk on its own. And that's kind of what the cast did for me."

He added of his former castmates, "It's a group that really is close and tight-knit … and loves each other."

If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, please contact the SAMHSA helpline at 1-800-662-HELP.