'When I Die': Matthew Perry Voiced His Wish For How He'd Like To Be Remembered Instead Of For Friends

We still can’t believe Matthew Perry is dead.

Obviously one of the first things everyone thinks about is Friends. The megahit sitcom is where we all spent the bulk of our time with the hilarious actor. 10 seasons of watching the guy be a comic genius, even in a cast of comic geniuses, it was brilliant.

But it turns out the man himself hoped he wouldn’t be remembered primarily for the show that made him a household name. There was something he found much more important later in life.

Related: Matthew’s ‘Heartbroken’ Family Speaks Out After His Sudden Passing

Speaking to podcaster Tom Power just last year, Matthew explained:

“I’ve had a lot of ups and downs in my life but the best thing about me, bar none, is that if an alcoholic or drug addict comes up to me and says, ‘will you help me?’ I will always say ‘yes, I know how to do that. I will do that for you, even if I can’t always do it for myself.’ So I do that, whenever I can. In groups, or one on one.”

Yes, the actor famously struggled with addiction for years, something he was open about in his book Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing. It’s the titular big terrible thing. Perry spent $9 million trying to get sober, and after all that effort he at least had something to show for it. He felt like he understood how to help people like himself. He continued:

“And I created the Perry House in Malibu, a sober-living facility for men. I also wrote my play, The End of Longing, which is a personal message to the world, an exaggerated form of me as a drunk. I had something important to say to people like me, and to people who love people like me.”

Obviously Matthew knew a lot of the focus would be on his beloved sitcom — it just wasn’t as meaningful to him in the end. He said:

“When I die, I know people will talk about Friends, Friends, Friends. And I’m glad of that, happy I’ve done some solid work as an actor, as well as given people multiple chances to make fun of my struggles on the world wide web… But when I die, as far as my so-called accomplishments go, it would be nice if Friends were listed far behind the things I did to try to help other people. I know it won’t happen, but it would be nice.”

Wow. So meaningful to get this wish straight from the man himself…

We’ll leave you with one more thing. In that same interview Matthew revealed the song that would be the soundtrack to his life, and it is heartbreaking. He said Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush‘s moving Don’t Give Up. What a way to remember a man who never did.

You can see the full interview on Q with Tom Power for yourself (below):

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