Matthew Perry Allegedly Lied About Being Sober for Years Before His Death
Several sources claim in a new report that Matthew Perry ‘crafted and manipulated’ the talk about his sobriety in his memoir that was published before his death.
Matthew Perry was allegedly lying about being sober before his sudden death in October 2023, several anonymous sources claimed in a US Weekly report published January 10. The insiders alleged that the Friends star was still dealing with his addiction prior to his passing, despite the fact that he claimed he was sober in his 2022 memoir, Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing. In fact, one source claimed that everything Matthew said about his sobriety in his book and during the press tour “was a lie.”
“He wanted to sell books. Everything was crafted and manipulated; the truth wasn’t important,” the insider said to the publication.
Another source alleged that Matthew met young women on the dating app Raya and convinced them to get him drugs. “Addicts are smart, and Matthew was brilliant,” the source claimed. “He would do the FaceTime thing and get to know them. Then it would be like, ‘Let’s hang out,’ and he would say [to come to his house]. He wasn’t out in public anymore. That’s how he snuck things past people.”
Although Matthew claimed he got sober in 2021, the US Weekly sources alleged that was not the case. “He was living locked up and not reaching out to [people]. That was his pattern when he used. He would cut himself off from everyone,” they claimed.
One of the sources further alleged that Matthew was even lying about his sobriety to his former Friends co-stars Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, David Schwimmer, and Matt LeBlanc, who all mourned his death on social media in November.
“He lied to all of them about so many things over the years,” the insider claimed. “He had so much respect for them, but he [didn’t always] have positive things to say about them. He felt inferior [to them], so when he spoke negatively, it came from that insecurity.”
Matthew was 54 years old when he died on October 28 at his home in Pacific Palisades, California. Nearly two months after his tragic passing, TMZ revealed that his official cause of death was due to “acute effects of ketamine.” The tabloid reported that Matthew underwent ketamine infusion therapy for depression and anxiety prior to his passing. Drowning, coronary artery disease and the effects of buprenorphine, which is a drug used to treat opioid use, were also listed as contributing factors in his passing by TMZ. Matthew’s death was ultimately ruled an accident.
The 17 Again star was open about his struggles with alcohol and pills over the years, though he was reportedly “clean” for 19 months at the time of his death. He wrote about his experience with ketamine in his memoir, and admitted he felt it had his name “written all over it.” He also said he felt like “dying” during the treatments but decided to “continually sign up for this s–t” because “it was something different, and anything different is good.”
If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, contact the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).