Their relationship was a Hollywood fairytale cut short. A year after Matthew Perry’s death, we look back on his romance with Julia Roberts—and the heartbreaking reason he believed it couldn’t last.
Late television star Matthew Perry dated several women in Hollywood over the years. One of the famous females that he had been involved with was A-list star Julia Roberts.
Perry shockingly passed away at age 54 on October 28, 2023. He was reportedly found in a hot tub at his Los Angeles home, according to what law enforcement officers revealed.
The authorities arrived at his residence at around 4 p.m. that day and discovered him unresponsive. An investigation into the cause of his death later concluded that Perry had died from the “acute effects” of ketamine, a drug commonly used for pain relief and treatment of mental health issues.
In early October 2024, nearly a year after Perry’s passing, Dr. Mark Chavez, a Los Angeles-based ketamine clinic operator, pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute ketamine in connection with the actor’s death.
Matthew Perry seen on January 30, 1999 | Source: Getty Images
Prosecutors revealed that Dr. Chavez had provided the drug to another physician, Dr. Salvador Plasencia, who then supplied Perry with ketamine. Perry’s assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa, allegedly coordinated the acquisition of over $50,000 worth of ketamine in the weeks leading up to the late TV star’s death.
As part of his plea agreement, Chavez has cooperated with prosecutors and awaits sentencing, scheduled for April 2, 2025. In the meantime, he remains free on bail, having surrendered both his passport and medical license.
Now, as we mark the first anniversary of Perry’s untimely death, we revisit his connection with Roberts and her reflections on his tragic passing.
Julia Roberts’ Thoughts on Matthew Perry’s Death
Roberts, who turned 57 on October 28, 2024, spoke openly about the “heartbreaking” loss of Perry in an interview with Entertainment Tonight’s Kevin Frazier in December 2023.
She reminisced about her time on “Friends,” sharing “all good thoughts and feelings” about her experience on the show, especially when portraying Susie Moss, a childhood classmate of Perry’s character, Chandler Bing, in the popular 1996 episode, “The One After the Super Bowl.”
David Schwimmer as Ross Geller and Matthew Perry as Chandler Bing on season two of the TV show “Friends” | Source: Getty Images
“They were all so welcoming to me as just a kind of a one-off character, and it was a really fun time,” she added, recalling her guest appearance fondly.
Reflecting on Perry’s passing, Roberts expressed her sorrow. “The sudden passing of anybody so young is heartbreaking. I think that, you know, it just helps all of us just appreciate what we have and to keep going in a positive way as best we can.”
Inside Perry & Roberts’ Romance
Perry was open about his struggles with substance addiction over the years. He discussed his journey in detail in his memoir, “Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing,” published in 2022.
In the book, the “17 Again” alum, who died on the 56th birthday of his former flame, movie star Roberts, also candidly opened up about his love life throughout the years.
Matthew Perry at the premiere of “17 Again” on April 14, 2009, in Hollywood, California | Source: Getty Images
Perry recounted how he met Roberts in the memoir, writing that it was when she had to guest star in the hit sitcom “Friends” in the post “Super Bowl” episode in season two.
According to him, the Academy Award-winning actress was only willing to make an appearance if she would be a part of his storyline, which left him in awe, but he remembered thinking that he had to “woo her.”
Matthew Perry and Julia Roberts on the set of “Friends,” in 2000 | Source: Getty Images
After much pondering about what to say to her, he revealed, “I sent her three dozen red roses and the card read: ‘The only thing exciting than the prospect of you doing the show is that I finally have an excuse to send you flowers.’”
Roberts replied, saying she would agree to be a part of the show if he could “adequately” explain quantum physics to her. “Wow. First of all, I’m in an exchange with the woman for whom lipstick was invented,” he penned.
Julia Roberts at the 46th Berlin International Film Festival on February 23, 1996 | Source: Getty Images
Perry sent her a paper explaining it all, and a staff writer on the show, Alexa Junge, later revealed that Roberts liked the beloved actor “from afar because he’s so charming,” Perry recalled.
Julia Roberts at the premiere of “Michael Collins,” 1996 | Source: Getty Images
Ultimately, she caved, and he courted her for three months through faxing because it was before the internet became a thing and before cell phones existed.
Matthew Perry at the Los Angeles premiere of “Scream,” 1996 | Source: Getty Images
Their entire exchange was via fax, which he used to send her poems. It even became a habit for him to sit and read the faxes “three, four, sometimes five times, grinning at that paper like some kind of [expletive],” Perry admitted. He further expressed:
“I was grinning like some fifteen-year-old on his first date.”
At that point, they had not spoken to each other, let alone met in person. One day, Roberts’ fax “veered romantic.” The pair started dating in 1995, as Perry had met her family by then. They had their first date at his house.
Matthew Perry appears on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” on December 18, 1996 | Source: Getty Images
They eventually filmed Roberts’ scenes in “Friends” where they shared an on-screen kiss. Perry described the Georgia native in his lines as “the perfect woman,” adding she was a great addition to the show.
He further gushed about their chemistry on-screen as she played his character’s childhood classmate. Of their time together, Perry recalled Roberts asking him how he was doing, and he said to her:
“I’m feeling like the luckiest man in the world.”
However, because he was battling addiction at the time, he experienced difficult moments and alluded that it led to his breakup with the “Pretty Woman” star two months after filming “Friends” with her.
Perry expressed that dating Roberts was “too much” for him. He had a preconceived notion that she would ultimately split up with him because he felt he was “not enough” for her.
“Dating Julia Roberts had been too much for me. I had been constantly certain that she was going to break up with me,” wrote the “Growing Pains” star. “I was not enough; I could never be enough; I was broken, bent, unloveable. So instead of facing the inevitable agony of losing her, I broke up with the beautiful and brilliant Julia Roberts.”
Matthew Perry on November 9, 2007, in Hollywood, California | Source: Getty Images
As we remember Matthew Perry on this first anniversary of his passing, his story with Julia Roberts offers both a celebration of his vibrant life and a glimpse into the love he carried privately. Their brief but heartfelt connection reminds us of the complexities he faced, his warmth, and his enduring spirit—a legacy that lives on in the hearts of fans and loved ones alike.
