Anna Faris, Matthew Perry Raymond Hall/GC Images;Santiago Felipe/Getty Images(2)
Anna Faris has nothing but nice things to say about working with the late Matthew Perry during her guest-starring role on the final season of Friends.
Faris, 47, detailed her time on the beloved long-running sitcom, in which she portrayed Erica – a pregnant woman whose twins Chandler (Perry) and Monica (Courteney Cox) adopt – for four episodes.
“It was an honor, and he was just an incredible person,” the My Spy: The Eternal City actress told People on Friday, July 19. “I wish I knew him better. It feels a little audacious for me to speak too much about somebody that I felt like I had brief interactions with, but they were wonderful and I am honored to be a part of the show.”
The Scary Movie star went on to tell the outlet that Perry had suggested her for the role after he saw her in the 2003 comedy-drama Lost in Translation, which also starred Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson.
Today, the cast of Friends are A-listers on their own. Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matthew Perry, Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer rose to massive fame during the show, which aired on NBC for 10 seasons from 1994 to 2004. From the start, the sitcom drew the attention of celebrities — and landed some […]
“He thought I was good,” she recalled. “I worked mostly with Courteney and Matthew, and they were unbelievable to me. They were so kind. I mean, it was such an intimidating idea. I mean, to give birth on Friends. Friends? The final season?”
Faris also noted that the rest of the cast – Jennifer Aniston, David Schwimmer, Matt LeBlanc and Lisa Kudrow – were all “really kind” during her time on set, but she opted to lay low because of the emotionally charged atmosphere of the farewell season. (Friends premiered in 1994 and wrapped in 2004 after 10 seasons.)
Anna Faris and Matthew Perry on “Friends.” YouTube
“They were also getting pretty emotional because they were wrapping things up,” she said. “It was really sentimental.”
Perry died in October 2023 from the “acute effects of ketamine,” according to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s office. His death was ruled an accident. He was 54 years old.
Warner Bros. Television/Getty Images The late Matthew Perry will always be remembered by the Friends cast. “We are all so utterly devastated by the loss of Matthew. We were more than just cast mates. We are a family,” the show’s stars, Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer, told Us Weekly […]
“We are all so utterly devastated by the loss of Matthew. We were more than just cast mates. We are a family,” Aniston, 55, Cox, 60, Kudrow, 60, LeBlanc, 56, and Schwimmer, 57, told Us Weekly in a joint statement released days after their costar’s death. “There is so much to say, but right now we’re going to take a moment to grieve and process this unfathomable loss.”
In an interview with CBS Sunday Morning in May, Cox said that Perry still “visits” her frequently.
“You know, he’s just so funny. He has genuinely a huge heart, obviously struggled,” she said while discussing the 20th anniversary of the Friends finale. “I’m so thankful I got to work so closely with him for so many years. He visits me a lot, if we believe in that.”