Friends became an iconic sitcom that defined popular culture of the 1990s. Premiering on September 22, 1994, the hit series followed the lives of six young friends navigating life and love in New York City. After 10 seasons and 236 episodes, Friends ended its legendary run in 2004, but it lives on for a new generation of fans through social media and streaming. This year marks the 30th anniversary of the premiere of Friends. However, the celebration of this milestone is bittersweet following the tragic passing of Matthew Perry, who portrayed Chandler Bing. Perry passed away on October 28, 2022, leaving friends and fans heartbroken.
Recently, Friends creators Marta Kauffman and David Crane, alongside executive producer Kevin Bright, appeared on the Today Show to reflect on the series’ anniversary. As reported by People, they expressed how the 30th anniversary isn’t the same without Perry, and celebrating it feels incomplete without him. In Bright’s words:
“It’s a huge loss and
it does make the 30th a little fraught
. He made us laugh every day. David always said he was the funniest man in the room… He had been fighting the good fight for so long. It really did feel like from the reunion that
he had found some peace
.”
Friends revolved around the everyday lives of six twenty-something friends as they stumbled around to find love, tackle relationships, and build a career in New York City. The cast included Jennifer Aniston as Rachel Green, Courteney Cox as Monica Geller, Lisa Kudrow as Phoebe Buffay, Matt LeBlanc as Joey Tribbiani, David Schwimmer as Ross Geller, and Matthew Perry as Chandler Bing, each of whom contributed greatly to make the show so popular.
Kauffman Shares the Ideal Way to Honor Matthew Perry
Matthew Perry’s role as Chandler Bing was a cornerstone of Friends. His quick wit, sarcastic humor, and loving personality made him a beloved member of the group. Some of his most iconic one-liners, like “Hi, I’m Chandler, I make jokes when I’m uncomfortable,” and “I’m hopeless and awkward and desperate for love!” and “I say more dumb things before 9 a.m. than most people say all day,” along with his on-screen chemistry with Tribbiani’s Joey, and his proposal to Cox’s Monica in Season 7 became memorable moments from the show.
Marta Kauffman fondly recalled the entire cast’s exceptional presence during early rehearsal, describing their dynamic by sharing, “When the six of them got on stage together, I got a chill up my spine and thought, ‘This is something special.’” She emphasized how each star brought a unique energy to the group and made the show what it was. To honor Matthew Perry, Kaufmann suggested:
“
Donate to drug treatment centers — let’s fight the disease.
The second way is to watch Friends and remember him not as a man who died like that, but as a man who was hilariously funny and brought joy to everybody.”
While the 30th anniversary of Friends is a time to make a toast to the show’s incredible impact, it is also a moment to remember Perry and the warmth he spread, the laughter he brought to countless fans, and the contributions he made to turn Friends into a timeless classic.
