Courteney Cox Breaks Her Silence on Matthew Perry’s Death: ‘He Was Funny and He Was Kind’
In a new heartfelt statement, Courteney addressed her late friend, whom the cast affectionately called “Matty.”
Courteney Cox broke her silence on Matthew Perry‘s untimely death in a new statement that she penned via Instagram on November 14. In her post, the 59-year-old actress included a video of the famous Friends scene between her and Perry’s characters, Chandler and Monica, when they got together for the first time in London.
“I am so grateful for every moment I had with you Matty, and I miss you every day,” Courteney wrote. “When you work with someone as closely as I did with Matthew, there are thousands of moments I wish I could share. For now, here’s one of my favorites. To give a little backstory, Chandler and Monica were supposed to have a one-night fling in London. But because of the audience’s reaction, it became the beginning of their love story. In this scene, before we started rolling, he whispered a funny line for me to say. He often did things like that. He was funny and he was kind.”
Hours earlier, Matt LeBlanc also released a heart wrenching tribute for his friend via Instagram. LeBlanc, 56, began his statement by saying “goodbye” to Perry.
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“Matthew, it is with a heavy heart I say ‘goodbye,’” LeBlanc wrote. “The times we had together are honestly among the favorite times of my life. It was an honor to share the stage with you and to call you my friend. I will always smile when I think of you, and I’ll never forget you. Never. Spread your wings and fly brother you’re finally free. Much love. And I guess you’re keeping the 20 bucks you owe me.”
Both LeBlanc and Cox’s individual statements came two weeks after the rest of the Friends cast — Lisa Kudrow, David Schwimmer and Jennifer Aniston — provided a group statement following Perry’s death.
“We are all so utterly devastated by the loss of Matthew,” they said in their October 30 statement obtained by PEOPLE. “We were more than just castmates. We are a family. There is so much to say, but right now, we’re going to take a moment to grieve and process this unfathomable loss. In time, we will say more, as and when we are able. For now, our thoughts and our love are with Matty’s family, his friends, and everyone who loved him around the world.”
Perry was found dead on October 28 in a jacuzzi at his home in Pacific Palisades, California. Around a week later, the Friends cast and several of Perry’s loved ones held a private funeral for him, where the late comedian was laid to rest in Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Los Angeles.