When people sit down to discuss the top sitcoms of all time, there are a handful of shows that always are in the running. Definitely one of those shows that is always in that discussion, Friends may just be the most celebrated TV sitcom of all time. In fact, people love Friends so much that they break down their favorite episodes by the season since there are too many that are worthy of praise when looking at the entirety of the show’s history.
When looking back at the history of Friends, it is clear that the show is so beloved for a long list of reasons. For example, one of the keys to Friends’ success is that fans had many options when deciding which of the show’s characters was their favorite. In fact, some people even think that Gunther was Friends’ best character. Of course, it should also go without saying that Chandler was a very popular character since Matthew Perry was so hilarious in the role. More importantly than his work as an actor, a lot of people have no idea that Perry has been a real-life hero.
Matthew Perry Has Been In Recovery For Many Years
By the time Friends came to an end, the show’s stars were making so much money that some people may have thought that they were on easy street. In reality, however, money certainly isn’t the only thing that matters and during his time starring in Friends, Matthew Perry dealt with an extremely serious problem that can’t be fixed by throwing cash at it.
In 1997, Matthew Perry got into an accident while riding a jet ski that would change his life forever. Prescribed an extremely strong pain reliever, Perry became addicted to that substance before too long and the popular actor also began abusing alcohol. A terrible combination, Perry soon realized that he needed to seek recovery.
To Matthew Perry’s eternal credit, he has been willing to talk about his addiction battles in public for many years which is great since that helps other addicts not feel so alone. For example, when Perry spoke to The New York Times in 2002, he explained that he sought treatment after realizing that he was in a battle for his survival. “I didn’t get sober because I felt like it. I got sober because I was worried I was going to die the next day.”
What Makes Matthew Perry A Real-Life Hero?
When the world learned that a Friends reunion special would be released in 2021, to say that the excitement was palpable is a huge understatement. Unfortunately, however, once the reunion was released, much of the discussion was about Matthew Perry slurring his words since there were concerns that he’d fallen off the wagon. In response to those concerns, it was reported that Perry's slur in the special was related to recent dental work he’d undergone instead of any kind of relapse.
Assuming that the reports about Matthew Perry’s dental work were accurate, it is clear that fans didn’t need to be worried about the beloved actor. That said, there also is no doubt that recovery from addiction is a lifelong battle and Matthew Perry is aware of that fact. Despite that, it also is true that when an addict has just become sober, they are at greater risk of relapse, especially if they are forced to return to the same environment.
At the end of the day, every addict who becomes sober is responsible for their own recovery. However, that doesn’t mean that people can’t make a huge difference in a recovering addict’s life by offering them support. Given the fact that Matthew Perry is intimately aware of what addicts go through, it makes sense that he offered help to people in recovery for years.
In 2013, Matthew Perry bought himself a new home. Instead of simply selling the four-bedroom Malibu home he was moving out of, Perry opted to renovate it so that it could operate as a sober living facility for recovering addicts. On top of turning his former home into a space for addicts to live, Perry also set up meditation programs and a twelve-step workshop for the facility’s residents. If all of that wasn’t enough, Perry also went to Congress to advocate for addicts to be allowed to choose treatment instead of being sent to prison.
Unfortunately, a couple of years after Matthew Perry opened up his former home to addicts, he closed the facility and sold the building. At that time, Perry said he planned to find a new location for the facility after concluding that having a recovery home in the middle of a residential neighborhood in Malibu wasn’t working. Ultimately, however, in 2016 it became clear that Perry no longer would be running a recovery program.
While it is sad that Matthew Perry only helped former addicts for a few years, it is important to keep two things in mind. First off, the fact that Perry helped people become sober for several months is a heroic act that makes him a real-life hero. Secondly, it is worth noting that many people have concluded that the pressures of running a recovery program may have been too much pressure for an addict like Perry to deal with.
