Friends and fans of Matthew Perry continue to grapple with the actor’s death at age 54, days after Perry reportedly drowned in the jacuzzi at his home in Los Angeles. His five Friends co-stars released a joint statement saying they are “utterly devastated,” calling Perry not just a friend but part of their family. Now someone who actually played a member of Chandler Bing’s family on the popular sitcom has spoken out too, as Morgan Fairchild recalled her TV son taking the words to Friends’ famous theme song to heart.
Morgan Fairchild played Chandler’s mom Nora Bing in five episodes of Friends. And while Matthew Perry’s character had a complicated relationship with the romance novelist on the show, Fairchild remembered feeling very close to him on set of the NBC series. He embodied the lyrics to “I’ll Be There for You,” she told ET:
He was a kind person, and I was so proud of him for having come through some of these hard times and turning to try to help other people, which I think is kind of the legacy that he would like to be known by. Not only was he a friend, but he would be there for you, as the song goes, ‘I’ll be there for you.’
Friends guest stars Selma Blair and Paget Brewster also paid tribute to Matthew Perry, expressing their sorrow at his death. Brewster, whose character Kathy had a brief relationship with Chandler, implored fans to read Perry’s memoir Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing to honor his legacy and the work he’s done to help others struggling with addiction. Morgan Fairchild echoed those sentiments, saying:
You know that he was there for other people, and I think that was one of the great things about him, not only his great talent as an actor, especially as a comedian, his incredible timing, but also his giving nature, the fact that he was always trying to give to other people. I think part of his big legacy will be the fact that he did seem to help so many people on the road to recovery.
In fact, Matthew Perry said in his book that while he’s proud to be known as the man who portrayed Chandler Bing, he hopes to be remembered for more than Friends. Fairchild seemed to confirm that’s already the case, as she said she’s received a number of DMs in the days since Perry’s passing of people saying that he had inspired them to get sober. She may have only played his mom on TV, but the pride she had for the actor was obvious when Fairchild said:
You know, with Matthew, I think his legacy will be joy and the joy he brought to other people through his work, but also through his outreach, his willingness to be open about his problems, the joy that he brought into people's lives that way. And I would just say, Matthew, a life well lived. Well done, well done, my son. Well done.
While Matthew Perry was open about his struggles with addiction, no drugs were found at the scene when emergency crews responded. An autopsy has been performed to rule an official cause of death. If you want to honor Perry by rewatching Friends and sing along to the poignant theme song, all 10 seasons are available to stream with a Max subscription.
