The actor was found unconscious at his LA home late in the afternoon on October 28 by first responders who were unable to revive him, law enforcement sources told Deadline. Perry's death is considered an ongoing investigation, they said.
Throughout his career, Perry struggled with addiction, as he described in his memoir “Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing,” published last year. “I really lived life to its fullest and that got me in trouble from time to time,” he said in a US Weekly interview several years ago.
Perry made his television debut in 1979 on an episode of 240-Robert. He would go on to book roles in series such as Not Necessarily the News (1983), Charles in Charge (1985), Silver Spoons (1986), Just the Ten of Us (1988) and Highway to Heaven (1988). Perry would be a series regular on Boys Will be Boys, which premiered in 1987 and ran for one season.
In 1989 he had a recurring role on Growing Pains, followed by a regular role on Sydney. Perry would continue to guest star on series such as Who's the Boss? (1990), Beverly Hills, 90210 (1990) and Dream On (1992). In 1993, he was a series regular on Home Free, but his big break would come the following year when he was cast as Chandler Bing on Friends.
The role made Perry and his co-stars on the NBC sitcom household names as Friends became an overnight success and dominated the TV ratings for its ten seasons. For his fan-favorite role as Chandler, Perry earned his first Emmy nomination in 2002; his last came in 2021 for the Friends reunion, with the series' cast and creators co-producing.
“He brought so much joy to hundreds of millions of people around the world with his pitch perfect comedic timing and wry wit,” NBC said in a statement following Perry’s death. “His legacy will live on through countless generations.”
Perry’s other television credits included Caroline in the City (1995), Ally McBeal (2002), The West Wing (2003) and Scrubs (2004). His appearances on Aaron Sorkin’s White House drama The West Wing landed him two Emmy nominations.
After his time on Friends, Perry went on to star in Sorkin's Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip. In 2011, he was the star, creator, executive producer and writer of Mr. Sunshine, which ran for thirteen episodes. A recurring role on The Good Wife followed. Perry also starred in and produced Go On in 2012.
In 2014, Perry guest-starred on Cougar Town, where he reunited on-screen with his Friends co-star Courteney Cox. The following year, Perry reunited with another Friends star, Lisa Kudrow, for Web Therapy. Perry starred on The Odd Couple for three seasons before reprising his role of Mike Kresteva on The Good Fight in 2017. Perry played Ted Kennedy in the limited series The Kennedys: After Camelot. His last television appearance is from 2021, when he reunited with the Friends cast for the Max special.
Perry also starred in a number of films. In 1999, Perry starred in the romantic comedy Three to Tango with Neve Campbell and Dylan McDermott. Perry would go on to star in The Whole Nine Yards in 2000, followed by Serving Sara (2002), The Whole Ten Yards (2004), The Ron Clark Story (2006), which earned Perry another Emmy nomination, Numb (2007) , Birds of America (2008) and 17 Again (2009).
Perry’s last Instagram post was on Oct. 22 when he shared a photo of himself in a jacuzzi at nighttime.
“Oh, so warm water swirling around makes you feel good? I’m Mattman,” he captioned the post.
