Matthew Perry’s former girlfriend, actress, Maeve Quinlan said she wasn’t surprised to hear that he had passed away when his death was announced Oct. 28, 2023.
The “Bold and the Beautiful” actress said she had very fond memories of her time with Perry and said he wasn’t struggling with addiction during their time together, according to a recent interview with Soap Opera Digest. “When Matthew and I embarked on a romantic relationship he was 100% sober and was very open about his previous struggles,” she said. “That was his one fully sober year, and we were practically inseparable. One of the reasons he liked being with me was that I didn’t do drugs.” She went on to say that she “never” saw him partake in drugs or alcohol during their relationship.
Mauve Quinlan arrives at 25th Annual Chris Evert/Raymond James Pro-Celebrity Tennis Classic Gala Photo by Aaron Davidson/Getty Images
Actor Matthew Perry and actress Maeve Quinlan attend the 2nd Annual Merv Griffin/Beverly Hills Celebrity Classic tennis tournament October 11, 2003 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Carlo Allegri/Getty Images
Quinlan and Perry dated from 2002 to 2003 and lived in the same apartment building in Los Angeles when he first kicked off his career as an actor. Quinlan admitted she didn’t really know who he was until he rose to fame with his role as Chandler on “Friends” in 1994. They enjoyed one another’s company while dating, and remained very close even after they broke up, maintaining a relationship “like brother and sister,” according to Soap Opera Digest.
She spoke fondly of Perry’s character.
“He was the guy that every guy wanted to hang out with and every girl wanted to date,” Quinlan said. “He was the guy next door.”
Actor Matthew Perry arrives at the 9th Annual Dinner Benefiting the Lili Claire Foundation at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on October 14, 2006 in Beverly Hills, California. Photo by Michael Buckner/Getty Images
In spite of his rising star in Hollywood, Quinlan said he was “kind of unsure of himself.”
“He wasn’t, believe it or not, completely confident with girls, even though he dated the likes of Julia Roberts,” she said.
Actor Matthew Perry at the after party for the FX Network’s premiere screening of “Dirt” at Republic on December 9, 2006 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Charley Gallay/Getty Images
“Friends” from L to R: Lisa Kudrow, Jennifer Aniston, Matthew Perry and Courteney Cox pose for photographers as they arrive for the 53rd Annual Golden Globe Awards 21 January in Beverly Hills. Photo credit should read MIKE NELSON/AFP via Getty Images
The famous “Friends” actor became addicted to Vicodin after he was prescribed the drug following a jet-ski accident. He entered rehab that same year and relapsed in 2001. He continued to battle his addiction issues for the duration of his life and spoke candidly about his struggles.
In spite of it all, Perry maintained his humor and didn’t let on that he was struggling.
Actors Michelle Trachtenberg, Zac Efron, Leslie Mann and Matthew Perry arrive at the premiere of Warner Bros. “17 Again” held at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre on April 14, 2009 in Hollywood, California. Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images
“I had no idea how much he was internally struggling because his main focus was always making other people happy and laughing,” she told Soap Opera Digest.
Quinlan recalled feeling “devastated” upon learning of his death.
“It wasn’t a shock but I still couldn’t believe it happened. And although we hadn’t seen each other in a while, I miss him very much,” she said.
Courteney Cox Arquette (L), Jennifer Aniston (C) and Matthew Perry are shown in a scene from the NBC series “Friends”. Photo by Warner Bros. Television/Getty Images
“Knowing him sober was the greatest gift of all. As the years went on, so many of us lost Matty little by little to his disease – and the important part of that sentence is that it is a disease,” she said. (RELATED: Hackers Take Over Matthew Perry’s Twitter Account In Apparent Scam)
Perry was found dead in the hot tub at his residence, at the age of 54, as a result of the acute effects of ketamine.