Friends Director Confesses That The News Of Matthew Perry's Death 'Destroyed' The Cast

Friends director Jim Burrows said he texted the ensemble after learning of Matthew Perry’s death, telling them they were “destroyed.”

Perry rose to prominence as Chandler Bing on the 90s sitcom, for which Burrows directed the first four episodes.

Friends’ entire production staff, including the cast, is reported to have remained close after the show ended in 2004.

With this in mind, Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, David Schwimmer, and Matt LeBlanc have all expressed their sadness over Perry’s death.

“We are all so utterly devastated by Matthew’s loss,” they wrote in a joint statement. We were more than simply coworkers.

“There is so much to say, but for the time being, we’re going to grieve and process this incomprehensible loss.”

“We will say more as we are able in the future.”

“For now, our thoughts and our love are with Matty’s family, his friends, and everyone who loved him around the world.”

Burrows expanded on the family theme, saying that they had lost a ‘brother’ in Perry.

“I texted the girls the day we found out,” he told Today.

“They were annihilated. It’s a dying brother.”

“I needed a couple of days to just soak it in,” Burrows continued.

“He was part of a family and he was the first one to not be part of that family anymore.”

The director, who has also worked on Frazier, Cheers, and Will & Grace, went on to call Perry “a wonderful actor, a funny man, and a dear friend to a lot of people.”

Marta Kauffman and David Crane, co-creators of Friends, were also interviewed today.

Kauffman informed the news outlet of their final interaction with him, “He was fantastic. He was cheerful and upbeat, and he didn’t appear to be burdened by anything.

“He was in a really good place which is why this seems so unfair.”

In a separate statement following Perry’s unexpected death, Kauffman and Crane praised the late actor as a “brilliant talent.”

“We will always cherish the joy, the light, and the blinding intelligence he brought to every moment – not just to his work, but in life as well,” they said in a statement released in collaboration with executive producer and director Kevin Bright.

Friends Director Confesses That The News Of Matthew Perry’s Death ‘Destroyed’ The Cast

Friends director Jim Burrows said he texted the ensemble after learning of Matthew Perry’s death, telling them they were “destroyed.”

“For now, our thoughts and our love are with Matty’s family, his friends, and everyone who loved him around the world.”

“He was part of a family and he was the first one to not be part of that family anymore.”

“He was in a really good place which is why this seems so unfair.”

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