Why Matthew Perry didn’t want to be remembered just for ‘Friends’

Matthew Perry spoke publicly about death a year ago and said how he would like to be remembered — not for “Friends,” but for helping others.

In Nov. 2022, the actor, who died Saturday at age 54, went on the “Q with Tom Power” podcast in Toronto to promote his memoir “Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing,” and candidly discussed his legacy.

“I would like to be remembered as somebody who lived well, loved well, was a seeker,” Perry said. “And his paramount thing is that he wants to help people. That’s what I want.”

Perry added: “The best thing about me, bar none, is that if somebody comes to me and says, ‘I can’t stop drinking, can you help me?’ I can say ‘yes’ and follow up and do it,” he said.

But, the actor went on to say he did not want his famous sit-com to be the No. 1 thing he’s known for. 

“When I die, I don’t want ‘Friends’ to be the first thing that’s mentioned,” he said. “I want that to be the first thing that’s mentioned. And I’m gonna live the rest of my life proving that.” 

He starred on the NBC comedy for 10 years alongside Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer.

“Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing,” which was published one year ago this week, dealt a lot with Perry’s close calls with death and his preoccupation with mortality. 

He wrote in the beginning of his book, which rawly revealed his life of pain and addiction, by saying, “I should be dead… My mind is out to kill me, and I know it. I am constantly filled with a lurking loneliness, a yearning, clinging to the notion that something outside of me will fix me.”

The actor was found dead of an apparent drowning Saturday afternoon in his hot tub in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles.

TMZ reported that no illicit drugs were found on the premises, but sources told the outlet that antidepressant and anti-anxiety medications were discovered inside Perry’s house.

On Sunday, Perry’s family said in a statement to People: “We are heartbroken by the tragic loss of our beloved son and brother. Matthew brought so much joy to the world, both as an actor and a friend.”