As the world continues to reel from Matthew Perry‘s shocking death, a clip of Jennifer Aniston tearing up over the thought of losing her fellow Friends co-star has resurfaced.
Ahead of the taping for the Friends series finale — which aired in 2004 — Aniston, who played Rachel Green on the hit sitcom, sat down with Diane Sawyer. At one point in the interview, the journalist asked the actress to reveal one thing each of her castmates doesn’t know about themselves.
When it came time for her to name something Perry, who played Chandler Bing through all 10 seasons, doesn’t know about himself, she said, “That he’s alright.”
“He struggled,” Aniston continued as she broke down in tears, referring to her friend’s addiction to drugs and alcohol. “We didn’t know. We, you know, we weren’t equipped to deal with it. Nobody had ever dealt with that. And, you know, the idea of even losing him…”
Before Perry died at the age of 54 last weekend, he had been open about his battle with addiction. He previously revealed that he was taking up to 55 Vicodin a day while filming Friends and, at one point, only weighed 128 pounds, per People.
In a 2022 interview with Sawyer, the actor gushed over Aniston for sticking by his side throughout the years.
“She was the one that reached out the most. You know, I’m really grateful to her for that,” he said, adding that Aniston was the one who confronted him about his addiction while Friends was still filming. “Imagine how scary a moment that was.”
While it was scary for him to face his friends, he recalled them banding together to help him through his struggles.
“[They] were understanding, and they were patient,” he said. “It’s like penguins. Penguins, in nature, when one is sick, or when one is very injured, the other penguins surround it and prop it up. They walk around it until that penguin can walk on its own. That’s kind of what the cast did for me.”
Earlier this week, the core Friends cast — Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, David Schwimmer, and Matt LeBlanc — released a joint statement addressing Perry’s heartbreaking death.
“We are all so utterly devastated by the loss of Matthew. We were more than just cast mates. We are a family,” the statement reads, per People. “There is so much to say, but right now we’re going to take a moment to grieve and process this unfathomable loss.”
It continues, “In time we will say more, as and when we are able. For now, our thoughts and our love are with Matty’s family, his friends, and everyone who loved him around the world.”
If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, call the SAMHSA National Helpline at 1-800-662-4357.
