Matthew Perry is taking a step in the right direction by removing a few choice words he used against Keanu Reeves in his November memoir about addiction and recovery, “Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing.”
During a sit-down chat at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books on Saturday, the 53-year-old actor admitted he may have made a mistake referring to the “John Wick” star in a negative light, and he’s righting his wrongs.
In his book, the “Friends” star questioned how Reeves “still walks among us,” while “the really talented guys” died, such as River Phoenix and Chris Farley.
“I said a stupid thing. It was a mean thing to do,” Perry said during a panel moderated by Matt Brennan.
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Matthew Perry offered condolences and a rewrite to Keanu Reeves after criticism for his November memoir. (Getty Images)
Perry wrote in the tome, “River [Phoenix] was a beautiful man, inside and out — too beautiful for this world, it turned out. It always seems to be the really talented guys who go down. Why is it that the original thinkers like River Phoenix and Heath Ledger die, but Keanu Reeves still walks among us?”
He added more fuel to the fire with another line, “His disease had progressed faster than mine had. (Plus, I had a healthy fear of the word ‘heroin,’ a fear we did not share). I punched a hole through Jennifer Aniston’s dressing room wall when I found out. Keanu Reeves walks among us.”
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The “Fools Rush In” actor didn’t speak to the “Speed” hero about the change in his memoir, but felt the need to edit simply due to being his neighbor.
Matthew Perry discussed his book about addiction and recovery at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books. (Dania Maxwell)
When excerpts were released in October, Perry faced backlash for unprompted remarks made against Keanu Reeves. (Albert L. Ortega)
“I pulled his name because I live on the same street,” Perry said. “I’ve apologized publicly to him. Any future versions of the book will not have his name in it.”
He also clarified that he hadn’t spoken to Reeves in person, and added: “If I run into the guy, I’ll apologize. It was just stupid.”
Shortly before the book was published, Perry received criticism for calling out the “Matrix” actor in print.
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He told People magazine at the time, “I’m actually a big fan of Keanu. I just chose a random name, my mistake. I apologize. I should have used my own name instead.”
Perry said he’s been sober since the “Friends” reunion in 2021. (Dania Maxwell)
Matthew Perry was cast on “Friends” when he was 24 years old. From L-R 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, Lisa Kudrow as Phoebe Buffay. (NBCU Photo)
Several celebrities came to Reeves’ defense on social media after the excerpts were released. “personally thrilled that Keanu Reeves walks among us,” Rachel Zegler tweeted and Linda Carter wrote “Come on… Keanu Reeves is like one of those frozen cakes. Nobody doesn’t like him!”
Perry spent upwards of $9 million on his decades-long substance abuse battle and trying to get sober. At one point, he was taking 55 Vicodin per day.
He revealed he had pursued 15 stints in rehab and underwent 14 surgeries for addiction-related medical issues. Perry was also on life support for a brief period and in a coma for two weeks.
Writing the memoir was part of his recovery. He said emotions came “pouring out of me – the painful stuff, hospitals, rehabs, all of this stuff — it poured out of me. It went really quickly.”
Perry remembered thinking, “What a horrible life this guy has had.”
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