Netflix’s “The One About Matthew Perry” tells the Friends star’s story through family and friends
“The One About Matthew Perry,” a three-part Netflix documentary series about the late Friends actor, is now streaming, Variety reported. Directed by Mary Robertson, it charts Perry’s rise and his long struggle with addiction through his half-sister, close friends and former partners. Critics at the Guardian and Variety called it intimate and sad, though Variety noted none of his Friends castmates were interviewed.
Who tells the story: The series leans on Perry’s younger half-sister, Mia Perry Bowick, and his close friends Roger Castillo and David Pressman, Variety reported. The Guardian said several ex-girlfriends also give “fond, eloquent accounts” of him. Friends writer Jeff Strauss and former NBC Entertainment president Warren Littlefield appear, according to Variety.
Who is missing: None of Perry’s Friends co-stars sat for interviews, and neither did longtime friend Hank Azaria or later collaborators such as Aaron Sorkin, Variety reported. Variety said the absence gives way to a more intimate portrait, though the series contains few new revelations.
The arc: The roughly three-hour series covers Perry’s childhood, Friends and the years of addiction that followed, the Guardian reported. Perry died in 2023 at 54 after a ketamine overdose; the series briefly addresses in its closing minutes the criminal cases that followed, including convictions of his dealers and his live-in assistant, Variety reported.
The reviews: The Guardian’s Lucy Mangan called it “candid, thoughtful” and said a few trims could have helped. Variety’s Alison Herman called it a “crushingly sad story” of a man whose talent and success were not enough to overcome a chronic disease.