Matthew Perry Once Said He’d Give Up Fame and Fortune to Avoid Facing Addiction: ‘I Would Trade It All’

Matthew Perry has spoken at length about his battle with addiction – and the things he’d give up to erase it.

In Perry’s 2022 cover story, he told PEOPLE that he would give up all his fame and fortune to avoid addiction.

“The fact that I would change everything if I didn’t have this disease is true,” he said.

But late Friends The alum was also quick to talk about the joys of filming 10 seasons of the sitcom alongside cast members — and IRL friends — Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer. “But I’m not discounting how much fun the experience was Friends,” he added. “And the money was incredible. Just the creative experience of being on the show probably saved my life.”

Matthew Perry Dead: Read Friends The 2022 PEOPLE cover star interviewed about his addiction and memoir

Friends are acting on the set of the movie “The One Where They All Turn Thirty.”.

Warner Bros. Television

It could have been a viral friendship, sure, but Perry’s work routine forced him to rest — instead of indulge. “When you’re making a million dollars a week, you can’t have a 37th drink,” he said. “You have to go home and sleep… It was the best job in the world.”

In the series, Perry played comedian Chandler Bing, who married Cox’s Monica Gellar in later seasons. The cast reunited in 2021 for HBO Max Friends: The Reuniona look back at the special that celebrated the show’s success and what Perry called the cast’s “unbreakable bond.”

Matthew Perry dead at 54 after apparent drowning

Matthew Perry as Chandler Bing in Friends.

NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty

Perry was found dead Saturday at his home in Los Angeles of what was believed to be drowning. He was 54 years old. Law enforcement sources first told TMZ that no drugs were found at the scene and that there did not appear to be foul play.

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Representatives for Perry did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

The actor published his memoirs, Friends, Lovers, and the Big Bad Thing: A Memoir, 2022. In it, he talked about his years in the spotlight, his struggles with addiction, and romantic relationships that went viral. The timing of the publication of his memoirs was strategic.

Matthew Perry fans honor the late actor with a tribute at Chandler Bing Friends Apartment in NYC

“I wanted to share when I was sure I wasn’t going back into the dark side of everything,” he told PEOPLE exclusively in his cover story. “I had to wait until I was fairly sober—and far from the active disease of alcoholism and addiction—to write it all down. And the most important thing was that I was pretty sure it would help people.”

If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, contact the SAMHSA Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP.

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