Matthew Perry Dead at 54: Relive His Extraordinarily Full Life in Pictures

Matthew Perry knew he'd really scored when he earned the part of sarcastic, lovable Chandler Bing on a freshman series about six best friends figuring it all out in New York City. 

"I was the second baseman for the New York Yankees. I couldn't f--k that up," the actor wrote in his 2022 memoir of landing on Friends alongside Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer. "I would never forgive myself."

He credited his 10-season stint on the impossibly popular NBC comedy for helping him stay sober, noting, "When you're earning $1 million a week, you can't afford to have the seventeenth drink."

And while his run as Chandler no doubt tops his life's resume, it's far from the only entry for the actor who died on Oct. 28. 

While he continued to collect TV and movie credits (Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, The Good Wife, and, most recently, the 2017 mini-series The Kennedys After Camelot), perhaps one of the more meaningful accomplishments was his Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing, his 2022 tome that detailed everything from his big Friends break to his famed romances to his previously private struggles with addiction. 

"People have just loved it," Matthew told E! News in an exclusive interview at last November's GQ Men of the Year event. "I shied away from nothing and I told the truth and the biggest thing was, the goal was, to help people and I know of a lot of people already who have been helped by it."

Most importantly, he continued, "We've already heard about five different people that have read it and then checked into rehab the next day." 

And could he have been more brave to share the full truth? "There's been some real up and downs in my life and this is a lot about the downs," he noted, "but the further down you go the more people you can help."

Across his 54 years, Perry was truly there for a lot of people. Relive his enormously full life in the pictures below. 

The Boys Will Be Boys star poses for a photo while at the Limelight in New York City.

The actor is seen while on the set of Sydney in Los Angeles, California.

The Friends star sits by the well-known fountain that serves as the backdrop for the show's opening sequence.

The actor attends the Scream premiere in Los Angeles.

Perry poses while on the set of Friends as his beloved character Chandler Bing.

The 17 Again star attends the Los Angeles premiere of The Grinch.

The actor hits the red carpet for the premiere of The Whole Ten Yards.

The Mr. Sunshine star attends the Entertainment Weekly and Matrix Men upfront party.

Pery poses for a photo while at the play The End Of Longing.

The American-Canadian actor was front and center at The Circle premiere in New York City.

Perry attends the 2022 GQ Men of the Year party.

Six months prior to his passing, the Almost Heroes star discussed his memoir while on stage at the 2023 Los Angeles Times Festival.