Matthew Perry, who starred as Chandler Bing on “Friends,” has died in an apparent drowning accident at his Los Angeles home, according to the Los Angeles Times, citing law enforcement sources.
He was 54.
No foul play is suspected, the sources told the LA Times.
Los Angeles Police would not confirm reports of Perry’s death to CNN. Representatives for Perry did not return CNN’s request for comment.
Born in Williamstown, Massachusetts, to an actor father and a journalist mother, Perry went to live with her in Ottawa, Canada, as a youngster after his parents split.
Growing up, he pursued his passion for tennis and became a top ranked tennis player in Canada. Like his father the younger Perry also developed an interest in acting after moving to Los Angeles when he was a teen to live with him.
Perry’s first credited role was a small part in the drama “240-Robert” in 1979. From there other bit parts came his way in shows including “Charles In Charge,” “Silver Spoons” and “The Tracey Ullman Show.”
His first film role was while still in high school, playing opposite River Phoenix in the 1988 film “A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon.” The year before the film’s release Perry starred in the sitcom “Second Chances” (later renamed “Boys Will Be Boys”) about a man who dies and returns to earth to mentor his younger self, played by Perry.
The series failed to find its audience and Perry continued to land more high profile roles in projects including “Growing Pains,” “Who’s The Boss” and “Beverly Hills, 90210.”
But it was being cast as affable and sarcastic Chandler Bing on the 1994 “Friends” that made him famous.
The role earned him a primetime Emmy nomination in 2002. He also enjoyed four other nominations for the prestigious TV acting award, including two for his turn as Joe Quincy on “The West Wing.”
“Friends” was a production of Warner Bros. Television, which is owned by CNN’s parent company, Waner Bros. Discovery.
On “Friends” Perry starred along with Courteney Cox, Matt LeBlanc, David Schwimmer, Jennifer Aniston and Lisa Kudrow in the comedy about a tight knit group of friends living in New York City.
Off screen, the actors became as close as their characters on the show and famously negotiated together to become some of the highest paid actors on a television series at the time.
The show helped bolster his career and he soon landed roles on the big screen in 1997’s “Fools Rush In,” “Almost Heroes” in 1998 and “The Whole Nine Yards” in 2000.
He recently published a memoir titled “Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing: A Memoir.”
In it, Perry revealed that his colon ruptured as a result of his opioid addiction when he was 49.
Doctors gave him only a two percent chance of survival and he was in a coma for two weeks followed by months more in the hospital.
The actor required 14 surgeries to help repair all of the abdominal damage, and he admitted to having gone to rehab 15 times over the years in hopes of kicking his drug addiction.
“What I’m most surprised with is my resilience,” he said. “The way that I can bounce back from all of this torture and awfulness. Wanting to tell the story, even though it’s a little scary to tell all your secrets in a book, I didn’t leave anything out. Everything’s in there.”
This story is developing and will be updated.
The-CNN-Wire
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