Matthew Perry and the Friends We Keep

A Netflix documentary about Matthew Perry premieres October 27, marking three years since his death in 2023 at age 54. According to Cinemablend, Perry died due to a combination of ketamine usage and accidental drowning. The three-part series, directed by Mary Robertson, will chronicle his life, career, and death through interviews with family and close friends.

What stands out is who isn’t in it. Cinemablend reports that Perry starred alongside Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Matt LeBlanc, Lisa Kudrow, and David Schwimmer on all 10 seasons of Friends, and the group maintained their personal friendships even after the show ended in 2004. EntertainmentNow notes that Perry’s five Friends costars were absent from the trailer, and Comic Basics, citing Page Six, reports that all five were approached and decided not to participate. An insider told Page Six that Aniston in particular would not do it because “she doesn’t want to relive it and have it be so public.” Comic Basics notes that in a 2022 interview with Diane Sawyer, Perry said Aniston was the friend who reached out the most during his struggles.

“she doesn't want to relive it and have it be so public.”

A Page Six insider, on Jennifer Aniston

The story so far

Cinemablend: ‘There’s No Way’ Jennifer Aniston And The Friends Cast Were Going To Sit Down For That Matthew Perry Doc
EntertainmentNow: Matthew Perry Documentary: Real Reason 'Friends' Cast Opted Out of Appearing
Comic Basics: 'Friends' Stars Reportedly Turn Down Matthew Perry Netflix Documentary in a Stunning Snub

What Ketamine Actually Is (And Isn’t)

Long before this week’s headlines, there was a deeper conversation happening about ketamine itself. The Ladyface AM episode on ketamine therapy with Celeste Hicken and clinical guests from Therapeutic Alternatives separated the medicine from the mythology.

Celeste and her guests walked through what supervised ketamine therapy actually does: create a safe container for your nervous system to process trauma, depression, and anxiety, often faster than SSRIs. The conversation was clinical and unflinching about the difference between therapeutic ketamine administered in a clinic under supervision and recreational use or unsupervised home administration. The episode covered patient screening, dosing protocols, why certain people are good candidates, and what happens after treatment ends.

The Matthew Perry situation loomed over that conversation as a specific, tragic example. If he’d been in a clinic under professional supervision instead of self-medicating at home, the outcome might have been different. That’s the gap the episode keeps coming back to: medicine versus tragedy.

Celeste and her guests also addressed cost and accessibility, the screening process for teenagers, and why the experience matters as much as the drug itself. This is the conversation that happens when you talk to actual providers instead of reading headlines.

Listen to the full episode to hear what ketamine therapy actually is, how it works, and why the Perry story doesn’t define the medicine.