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Matthew Perry earned an impressive amount of money during the decades he was active in Hollywood.
From starring on “Friends,” one of the most successful television shows of all time, to writing a revealing memoir, the beloved actor had a remarkable career until his death.
Perry died on October 28 after apparently drowning in a hot tub at his home in the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles, law enforcement sources confirmed to Fox News Digital. He was 54 years old.
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Matthew Perry died on October 28 at the age of 54. (Getty Images / Fake Images)
The “Friends” actor’s place of death was listed as his home. The status of his case remains open.
Perry’s cause of death has been deferred by the Los Angeles County medical examiner, leaving a grieving public wondering what happened to the beloved star.
The fate and future of Perry’s estate is still being determined. Here’s a look back at Perry’s career and her impressive earnings.
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Perry rose to fame after starring on “Friends” for 10 seasons. The hit show aired from 1994 to 2004, and although each cast member was paid $1 million per episode in its final years of airing, they continued to earn millions annually in syndication.
Perry and co-stars Jennifer Aniston, David Schwimmer, Courteney Cox, Matt Le Blanc and Lisa Kudrow each earned $20 million annually in distribution revenue from Warner Brothers for their roles in “Friends” in 2018, and reportedly that number was even higher. after Netflix picked up reruns of the show, according to Marketplace.
(Left to right): Matthew Perry as Chandler Bing, Jennifer Aniston as Rachel Green, David Schwimmer as Ross Geller, Courteney Cox as Monica Geller, Matt Le Blanc as Joey Tribbiani and Lisa Kudrow as Phoebe Buffay in “Friends,” circa nineteen ninety five. (NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images/Getty Images)
The six actors had a deal that paid them each 2% of “Friends” distribution revenue, when Warner Bros. was making $1 billion annually from airing the show, the outlet reported.
Perry, born in Massachusetts and raised in Canada, was 24 when he began playing Chandler Bing on “Friends.”
Despite being one of the best actors of the ’90s, Perry struggled with substance abuse during the height of his fame.
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“I could handle it, more or less. But when I was 34, I was really in a lot of trouble,” he confessed, according to People.
“But there were years where I was sober during that time. Season 9 was the year I was sober throughout. And guess what season I got nominated for best actor? I thought, ‘That should tell me something.’ “
Notably, the actor earned more than $1 million per episode of the final season of “Friends,” but spent more than $9 million on his battle with addiction. (Phillip Faraone/Getty Images for GQ/Getty Images)
Perry reportedly spent more than $9 million on his decades-long battle with substance abuse and sobriety. At one point, he was taking 55 Vicodin a day, he wrote in his 2022 memoir, “Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing.”
He revealed that he had spent 15 stints in rehab and had undergone 14 surgeries for medical problems related to addiction.
Writing the memoirs was part of his recovery. She said emotions “came pouring out of me: the painful things, the hospitals, the rehab centers, all these things, they poured out of me. It was very fast.”
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After “Friends” ended and before Perry wrote her explosive memoir, she continued to find success on television by starring in other popular shows.
In 2003, Perry earned his second Emmy nomination for his guest appearance on “The West Wing.” In 2007, he was nominated for an Emmy and a Golden Globe for starring in “The Ron Clark Story,” which follows a small-town teacher who transfers to a difficult school.
The cast of “Friends” reunited for a special in 2021.
The cast of “Friends” was reportedly offered $1 million each, but negotiated up to $2.5 million for a reunion special. (Getty Images / Fake Images)
According to Variety, each cast member earned $2.5 million for the nostalgic special.
The “Friends” cast members were reportedly offered $1 million each, but negotiated down to $2.5 million, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Following Perry’s death, her memoir, “Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing,” broke records and was No. 1 on Amazon’s best-seller list. Her book immediately became a New York Times bestseller after its initial publication last November.
The Matthew Perry Foundation was also launched in his honor. The charity was established to help those struggling with addiction, something that was very important to Perry.
Following Perry’s tragic death, her memoir “Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing” broke records and took the No. 1 spot on Amazon’s best-seller list. (Flatiron Books/Amazon/Fox News)
While the actor lived a famous but tumultuous life, he never married or had children. Therefore, many wonder who will inherit his considerable fortune.
“He makes about $20 million a year in residual income, the entire cast makes that,” entertainment attorney Tre Lovell told Entertainment Tonight, “and that will continue as long as the shows keep repeating.
“Remainder continues after someone dies. It’s like an obligation that is paid to the actor and continues to his or her heirs.”
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The cause of Matthew Perry’s death has not been revealed. (Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic/Getty Images)
Lovell explained that “there will be a designated person who will determine where Perry’s royalties will go for the foreseeable future.”
“[Given] “The fact that he didn’t have a spouse or children, it would pass down to his parents equally,” Lovell added. “Each biological parent will most likely receive half of the estate.”
Perry previously revealed that he would have traded his fame and fortune to avoid his battle with addiction.
“The fact that I would trade everything to not have this disease is true,” he told People in a 2022 interview. “But I don’t underestimate how fun the ‘Friends’ experience has been. And the money was incredible. Just the experience being on the show probably saved my life.
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“When you make a million dollars a week, you can’t have the 37th drink. You have to go home and sleep… That was the best job in the world.”
FOX Business’ Breck Drumas and Tracy Wright contributed to this report.
