Matthew Perry once said that it was "devastating" when his colleague Jennifer Aniston "confronted" him about his drinking when they worked together on Friends.
The late actor – who died, aged 54, last month – had been open about his history of substance abuse in recent years. He spoke candidly about having previously been addicted to alcohol and opioids, including in his memoir Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing, which was released last year.
He recalled in the memoir that he experienced such issues whilst working on the NBC sitcom, which ran from 1994 to 2004. Matthew – who played Chandler Bing – said that he "certainly worked hungover" on the beloved show.
Matthew also said that his colleague Jennifer, now 54 – who reportedly declined the offer to go on a date with him once – came to his trailer on one occasion to discuss his drinking. He noted that it "wasn't good news" from her.
He said that she expressed awareness of his drinking. Matthew added that he had "long since gotten over her" and that she'd been dating Brad Pitt. The actor said he'd worked out "how long" to look at her without it being "awkward."
Matthew continued: "But still, to be confronted by Jennifer Aniston was devastating." He added that he was "confused," saying that he asked how she could tell as he "never" worked "drunk" and had been "trying to hide" the issue.
He continued in the memoir: "'We can smell it,' she said in a kind of weird but loving way. And the plural 'we' hit me like a sledgehammer." Matthew then recalled telling his co-star that he was aware that he was "drinking too much" at the time but said he hadn't known what to do about it.
Matthew is said to have been committed to his sobriety in recent years, following Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and numerous apparent stints in rehab. He once suggested that he wanted to speak about his past to help others.
Jennifer once suggested that Matthew's colleague "weren't equipped" to deal with his addiction. She opened up about him in an interview Diane Sawyer from 2004, which has since resurfaced following Matthew's recent passing.
Asked what he didn't know about himself, Jennifer said: "That's he's alright." Diane mentioned in a voiceover that Matthew had experienced addiction, with Jennifer seen in tears as she discussed supporting her former colleague.
She said: "He struggled." Discussing being unsure how to support him, she said: "We didn't know. We, you know, we weren't equipped […] to deal with it." She added: "You know, nobody had ever dealt with that." Jennifer then appeared emotional as she mentioned the "idea of even losing him".
