Jennifer Aniston was 'first' to go to Matthew Perry's funeral as Friends actors reunited to mourn co-star

The world was shocked to its core after beloved Friends star, Matthew Perry, was found dead last Sunday (28 October).

The 54-year-old actor, best-known for playing Chandler Bing on the hit NBC sitcom, was reportedly found dead in a hot tub at his Los Angeles residence.

Perry five fellow Friends co-stars gathered yesterday (3 November) to mourn the loss of the acting icon at his funeral which took place at the Forest Lawn cemetery in the Hollywood Hills.

Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, David Schwimmer, Matt LeBlanc and Lisa Kudrow all reunited to attend the service, however, it was Aniston who was reportedly the 'first' to go to the funeral.

The news of Perry's passing was first confirmed by a statement from NBC - the network which aired Friends.

"We are incredibly saddened by the too soon passing of Matthew Perry," it read.

"He brought so much joy to hundreds of millions of people around the world with his pitch-perfect comedic timing and wry wit.

"His legacy will live on through countless generations."

Perry's co-stars later shared a heartbreaking tribute to him, writing: "We are all so utterly devastated by the loss of Matthew.

"We were more than just cast mates.

"We are a family.

"There is so much to say, but right now we’re going to take a moment to grieve and process this unfathomable loss.

"In time we will say more, as and when we are able.

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

NBC / Contributor / Getty Images

According to TMZ, the quintet of grieving actors were among around 20 mourners including Perry's mother, Suzanne Perry, and his stepfather, Keith Morrison, as well as his father, John Bennett Perry.

An onlooker told DailyMail.com that Aniston was 'one of the first to arrive'.

"She kept herself to herself. This is a high profile gathering," they added.

Perry and Aniston clearly had a very strong bond both on and off camera with the late actor previously praising her for checking on him after the sitcom finished filming its 10-year run.

Just last year, Perry opened about how Aniston stayed in close contact with him throughout the ups and downs of his addiction struggles and his subsequent sobriety journey.

"She was the one that reached out the most. You know, I'm really grateful to her for that," Perry said of Aniston in interview with Diane Sawyer back in October of 2022.

Ron Davis / Contributor / Getty Images

He also revealed that it was Aniston who was the first to confront him, during their time filming the show, when his addiction started to become evident to his fellow cast mates.

"Jennifer, she says, 'We know you're drinking,'" Sawyer said in the interview to which he responded: "Yeah, imagine how scary a moment that was."

"I should have been the toast of the town, but I was in a dark room meeting with nothing but drug dealers and completely alone," he later added.

An investigation into Perry's death is ongoing and there is currently no cause of death.

There was no apparent foul play.

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