Matthew Perryalways had the support of his parents.
Matthew grew up in Ottawa, Canada, with his mother before moving to California to live with his father as a teenager. He followed in the footsteps of John, who is also an actor, and the two shared the screen on many occasions. While John and Matthew typically played father and son, the elder Perry also appeared on Matthew’s hit showFriendsin 1998.
Matthew Perry, John Bennett Perry, and Suzanne Morrison.L. Cohen/WireImage ; Gregg DeGuire/WireImage
L. Cohen/WireImage ; Gregg DeGuire/WireImage
“They were both standing at the edge of my bed,” Matthew recalled toDiane SawyeronABC Newsin October 2022. “I was like, ‘Whoa, I must be really sick for this to be happening.’ ”
Keith — who has known Matthew since he was 10 — was also there for the actor, telling PEOPLE in 2020, “We were able to be with hima lot of the time through that, which was I think good for everybody.”
TheDatelinecorrespondent also discussed his relationship with Matthew, saying his stepson had been “remarkable” since adolescence. “He’s one of those people who always is the center of the room for a reason and it was so as a kid,” Morrison shared. “He’s an intense, talented, focused character. He’s very bright. That was always the case as he was growing up.”
After Matthew died at age 54 in October 2023, his familyreleased a statementexclusively to PEOPLE.
In February 2025, Peacock released a documentary titledMatthew Perry: A Hollywood Tragedy, which unpacks the events leading up to the actor’s accidental overdose.
From their years raising the Hollywood star to how they supported him through his struggles, here’s everything to know about Matthew Perry’s parents and their relationship with the late actor.
His parents John and Suzanne divorced before Matthew’s first birthday
John Bennett Perry and Matthew Perry in 2023.Matthew Perry/Instagram
Matthew Perry/Instagram
Matthew hadvivid memoriesof shuttling back and forth between his mother and father, who had moved to California. “When I was 5 years old, my parents put me on a plane alone from Montreal to Los Angeles. And I was terrified,” Matthew told PEOPLE in October 2022. “My feet didn’t even touch the floor. And then when I saw the lights of the city, I knew we were landing, that my dad was going to pick me up, and I’d have a parent again.”
At 15, Matthew moved to California to live with his father John, his stepmom Debbie and his half-sister Marie.
John Bennett Perry is an actor
John Bennett Perry in 1984.Bob D’Amico /American Broadcasting Companies/Getty
Bob D’Amico /American Broadcasting Companies/Getty
Before Matthew played Chandler Bing onFriends, his father was in the spotlight. In addition to performing with the Ojai Valley Boys, a folk-country trio, John had a long-running stint as a sailor in a series of Old Spice commercials.
John also appeared onLittle House on the PrairieandMurder, She Wrote. “I didn’t get much of a chance to see him as a kid,” Matthew told PEOPLE of his father in 1995. “He’d call up and say, ‘I’m getting killed onMannixthis Thursday. Look for me.’ "
John told PEOPLE he had mixed emotions about Matthew following in his footsteps after watching him in a school production ofOur Town. “I thought, ‘We’ve got a problem here,’ " he recalled. “‘He’s good. There’s another generation shot to hell!’ ”
Suzanne worked for Justin Trudeau’s dad
Matthew Perry with his sister Emily and his mother Suzanne.Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection/Getty
Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection/Getty
In his memoir, Matthew recalled his frustration with being a “latchkey kid” during his mother’s “stressful” tenure with the prime minister. “That’s when the bad behavior started,” he wrote. “I got s—– grades, I started smoking, I beat up Pierre’s son.”
The actor had previously recalled the time when he and his friends “beat up” Justin Trudeau during a2017 appearance onJimmy Kimmel Live!. “I think he was excelling in a sport that we weren’t, so it was pure jealousy. And, you know, we beat him up,” he told hostJimmy Kimmel.
WhenTrudeau jokingly asked Matthew for a “rematch” on X(formerly Twitter) in 2017, Matthew declined and tweeted, “I think I will pass at your request for a rematch, kind sir (given that you currently have an army at your disposal).”
After Matthew’s death in 2023,Trudeau paid tribute to his childhood friendon X, writing, “I’ll never forget the schoolyard games we used to play, and I know people around the world are never going to forget the joy he brought them. Thanks for all the laughs, Matthew. You were loved — and you will be missed.”
Keith Morrison has been aDatelinecorrespondent since 1995
Keith Morrison at the Dateline Season 24 Premiere.Michael Loccisano/NBC/NBC Newswire/NBCUniversal/Getty
Michael Loccisano/NBC/NBC Newswire/NBCUniversal/Getty
Matthew’s stepfather, Keith, has worked forDateline NBCsince 1995. In 2020, he opened up to PEOPLE about his long career, saying, “I had no expectationthis would become what it has. All these years later, this job, it’s the love of my life.”
The journalist also shared that he had no plans to retire. “I’ll just go on as long as I can, because why not?” he added. “I’m extremely lucky.”
His parents brought Matthew to rehab when he reached out for help
Matthew Perry.Newsmakers/Getty
Newsmakers/Getty
On Feb. 23, 2001, Matthew called his parents from a Dallas hotel room, asking for their help in getting sober. “I was in fear of losing my life,” he told PEOPLE the next year. “There’s a moment of claritywhere you have to prioritize your life. I listened to it.”
Matthew told PEOPLE that he initially developed a dependency on Vicodin after a jet ski accident in 1997. In 2001, he left Dallas, where he was filmingServing Sara(2002), and met his parents in L.A. so they could take him to rehab. “It was scary. I didn’t want to die,” he said. “But I’m grateful for how bad it got. It only made me more adamant about trying to get better.”
Years later, John was with Matthew when theFriendsstar had aspiritual momentin his kitchen, which led him to quit drinking. “I couldn’t see the kitchen anymore,” Matthew told PEOPLE in 2022. “It was just this light, and I felt loved and understood, and in the company of God or whatever. My dad was right next to me, and we were holding hands.”
Matthew and John appeared together on-screen
John Bennett Perry as Gregory Marks, Matthew Perry as Murray Marks on ‘Scrubs’ in 2004.Mitch Haddad/NBCU Photo Bank/Getty
Mitch Haddad/NBCU Photo Bank/Getty
John and Matthewplayed father and sonon multiple occasions, including a 2004Scrubsepisode that Matthew also directed. John’s brother Tony also appeared in the episode, Matthew toldtheNews-Times.
John also appeared in 1997’sFools Rush Inas Richard Whitman, father to Matthew’s Alex Whitman. In addition, Matthew and John co-produced the playThe Whole Bananaat the Court Theatre in West Hollywood, California, according toPlaybill.Deadlinereported that they also produced the 2013 film adaptation.
One of the duo’s most memorable appearances was on Matthew’s hit showFriends. John guest-starred in season 4, episode 18, “The One with Rachel’s New Dress.”
Unlike in their other projects, however, they didn’t play father and son. John portrayed the father of Rachel’s boyfriend, Joshua Burgin. When Joshua’s parents returned from a holiday and found Rachel in a nightgown,Mr. Burgin quipped, “I like her. She seems smart.”
One of the father-son duo’s most memorable appearances was on Matthew’s hit showFriends. John guest-starred in season 4, episode 18, “The One with Rachel’s New Dress.”
Matthew has several siblings from John and Suzanne’s later marriages
Matthew Perry and his sister, Madeline, at the “Spider-Man” Premiere.Gregg DeGuire/WireImage
Gregg DeGuire/WireImage
Though John and Suzanne only had one child, Matthew, during their marriage, they both had more children with their subsequent spouses.
John exchanged vows with his wife Debbie in July 1981. The couple later welcomed a daughter, Mia.
Suzanne is a former beauty queen
Matthew Perry and his mother, Suzanne, attend the Governor’s Ball for the 54th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards.Vince Bucci/Getty
Vince Bucci/Getty
Matthew revealed in his 2022 memoir that his mother was a beauty queen before marrying John. In 1966, Suzanne, then a University of Toronto student, was crowned Miss Canadian University Snow Queen; she competed against students from schools across the country.
Keith didn’t think Matthew would become an actor
Andy Cohen, Tamra Judge and Keith Morrison on ‘WATCH WHAT HAPPENS LIVE WITH ANDY COHEN’.Charles Sykes/Bravo/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal/Getty
Charles Sykes/Bravo/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal/Getty
In 2018, Keith toldAndy CohenonWatch What Happens Livethat while he believed that Matthew “would be famous,” he didn’t expect his stepson to be known as an actor.
The journalist later told PEOPLE that Matthew had been figuring out if the industry was for him when he landed his role as Chandler Bing. “He was at a stage where [he was questioning] if this acting thing was going to work or not,” Keith said. “Then suddenly, boy did it ever.”
Keith wasn’t surprised that Matthew excelled in that particular role, however. “It matched his particular sense of humor precisely, whether they wrote that for him knowing what he was like or whether he adapted it more for himself, probably a combination of the two,” he said. “That character is Matthew. Yeah, and it always has been him. He’s just a talented soul, a smart guy.”
Matthew and John appeared in PEOPLE’s Sexiest Man Alive issue in 2003
Matthew Perry and John Bennett Perry during “Fools Rush In” Los Angeles Premiere.Magma Agency/WireImage
Magma Agency/WireImage
When Matthew was featured in PEOPLE’s Sexiest Man Alive issue in 2003, John was on hand for the photo shoot. “That was one of the best moments I’ve ever had,” theMr. Sunshinealum toldKatie Couricin 2004. “Just because I get to show up to that photo shoot with my father. And he and I really enjoy sharing time. And it’s just so corny. The sexiest father and son?”
John is distantly related to Courteney Cox’s mom
Matthew Perry and Courteney Cox Arquette at the AFI Associates luncheon in 2006.Kevin Winter/Getty
Kevin Winter/Getty
In 2021,CNNreported that Matthew andCourteney Cox, who played Chandler’s wife Monica Geller onFriends, are distantly related.
According to the news outlet, genealogists atMyHeritagediscovered that Cox’s mother, Courteney Copeland, and John share a pair of ancestors: William Hasborn Haskell III and his wife Ellen Haskell, who lived in England in the 17th century.
Copeland descends from the Haskells’ son Roger, while John is a descendant of their son William IV, making Matthew and Cox 11th cousins once removed.
Keith said he had a “close” relationship with Matthew
Looking back on Matthew’s death during a March 2024 appearance onHoda Kotb’s podcast,Making Space,Keith said that he and the actor “got along fine.”
“I never tried to replace his dad … but I was there for him, and he knew it, and we were close,” he said, adding that Matthew and Suzanne had been “closer than I’ve seen them for decades.”
“He was happy, and he said so. And he hadn’t said that for a long time. So it’s a source of comfort, but also he didn’t get to have his third act, and that’s not fair,” he said.
Keith also opened up about how hard the grieving process had been, “especially for his mom.”
“As other people have told me hundreds of times, it doesn’t go away. It’s with you every day. It’s with you all the time, and there’s some new aspect of it that assaults your brain,” he added.
In August 2024, Keith told PEOPLE that he hoped “justice” would be carried out afterfive people were chargedin connection to Matthew’s death.
Since Matthew’s death, Keith and Caitlin have been working together to form the Matthew Perry Foundation of Canada, which aims to help those struggling with addiction.
“Anybody who has lost a child will tell you that, even if you are in some way prepared for the possibility,it’s shattering,” Keith toldHELLO! Canadain October 2024. “What we have decided to do is hang on to that determination and try to do something useful.”
If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, please contact the SAMHSA helpline at 1-800-662-HELP.
source: people.com
