TheFriendsfamily is paying their respects to the beloved Chandler Bing.
Aisha Tyler, who portrayedDavid Schwimmer’s character Ross’ girlfriend, Charlie Wheeler, for nine episodes of the show — becoming the first Black person with a recurring role on the sitcom — wrote onInstagramthat Perry “had a gentleness and generosity of spirit that was unparalleled.”
J.Sciulli/WireImage
Elliott Gould, who played Monica and Ross’ father on the sitcom and became Chandler’s father-in-law after he wed Monica in season seven, also paid tribute to Perry, who he described as “kind, thoughtful, smart, funny and just a terrifically, talented actor.”
Jennifer Aniston (left), David Schwimmer, Aisha Tyler, Matt LeBlanc and Matthew Perry on ‘Friends’.NBCU Photo Bank
NBCU Photo Bank
Christina Ricci, who guest starred as one of Joey Tribbiani’s (Matt LeBlanc) seven sisters in the spinoff seriesJoey,praisedPerry as a “genius” on Instagram as she shared, “Friendssaved me numerous times during hard and lonely times in my life. I adored his character and wanted to marry Chandler Bing as a teenager. I watched all his movies.”
Despite never having met Perry, Ricci, 43, said that she “burst into tears” when she read the news of his death and encouraged people to read his book, which she called “another gift he gave us.”
“I downloaded his book and read the whole thing on my cross country flight today. I’m heartbroken this man suffered so much in life while giving us so much of himself,” she wrote. “May he finally rest in peace ♥️.”
Maggie Wheeler, who played Chandler’s on-again-off-again girlfriend Janice Hosenstein before he married Monica (Courteney Cox), also weighed in following the actor’s death.
Matthew Perry (left) and Maggie Wheeler on ‘Friends’.Maggie Wheeler/Instagram
Maggie Wheeler/Instagram
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“He came to see one of my Broadway shows and he came backstage,” Turner, 69, said. “When he saw me, he yelled out, ‘Hey dad’ and everyone thought it was pretty cool. I think it was forWho’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf.”
“He liked other people, which, to me, is terribly important, especially for an actor."
The series’ co-creatorsMarta KauffmanandDavid Cranealong with executive producerKevin Brightissued a joint statement Sundayexpressing their love for the late actor, who they said “was always the funniest in the room.”
Reflecting on Perry’s breakout role as the sarcastic Chandler Bing, they continued: “It’s a cliché to say that an actor makes a role their own, but in Matthew’s case, there are no truer words. From the day we first heard him embody the role of Chandler Bing, there was no one else for us.”
Matthew Perry (left) and Courteney Cox Arquette in ‘Friends’.Gary Null/NBCU Photo Bank
Gary Null/NBCU Photo Bank
One of Perry’s longtime friends,Hank Azaria— who scored a role onFriendsas one of Phoebe Buffay’s (Lisa Kudrow) boyfriends, David — alsopaid tribute to the late actorin avideoposted on Instagram Sunday.
“Matthew was the first friend I made in Los Angeles, when I moved there. I was 21, he was 16,” Azaria, 59, said as he started the lengthy tribute to his friend, who he praised as “the funniest man ever.”
“Matthew and I became really good friends and we were really more like brothers for a long time. We drank a lot together, we laughed a lot together, we were there for each other in the early days of our career,” he continued. “I really loved him.”
source: people.com
