Matthew Perry Recalls Hiding Drug And Alcohol Addiction During Friends

The show Friends may have had us all laughing, but Matthew Perry states it was one of the worst times of his life. In a recent interview with ABC News, former Friends actor Matthew Perry recalls his past drug and alcohol addiction.

Perry sat down with ABC News and shared that during filming of the popular comedy, he was hiding his addiction to drugs and alcohol. “I think I was pretty good at hiding it, you know, but, you know, eventually people were aware,” he said. Matthew Perry spent years hiding his addiction from his co-stars Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, David Schwimmer, Courteney Cox, and Jennifer Aniston.

Matthew Perry also revealed that he often finds it hard to recollect those times. “I honestly recoil. It’s scary to look at that. I was a sick guy.” While others may remember the show and laugh, he has trouble looking at photos of himself during that time.

In 1997, Perry did a 28-day program for a Vicodin addition and returned to rehab in 2001 for an addiction to Vicodin, Methadone, Amphetamines and alcohol. He recalls, “If you’re thrown from treatment to the outside world, sometimes it’s too bumpy.”

Perry wasn’t all seriousness during the interview. He added a joke, “Champions of Recovery, which is a very surreal thing, we’re award-winning alcoholics.”

Shanika Simmons