Matthew Perry doc claims Hollywood enablers “preyed on somebody vulnerable”

A new documentary exploring the death of Matthew Perry is set to look at the illegal trade of ketamine use in Los Angeles.

• READ MORE: Matthew Perry has died aged 54

The Friends star died on October 28, 2023, and was found unresponsive in the hot tub of his Los Angeles home. He was 54. On December 15 of that year, his death was revealed to have occurred due to acute effects of ketamine.

The trailer for Matthew Perry: A Hollywood Tragedy debuted February 19 ahead of its premiere on the streaming service Peacock on February 25. It looks into the circumstances around the actor’s death, as well as the figures that lure people into addiction and relapse.

“We used to blame the victim. We don’t do that anymore,” Martin Estrada, U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California, says at one point in the clip. In addition, a voice in the trailer comments that: “Hollywood is full of enablers. They really preyed on somebody vulnerable”.

In addition to the exploration of the drug trade, Perry’s celebrity is examined, showing how the love the public felt for the comedy actor also came with extreme pressures. “I genuinely think a lot of people don’t realise what fame really is” remarks one interviewee, when talking about the global success of the show.

A trial surrounding the actor’s death is scheduled to go ahead in March 2025, with two people accused of supplying the drugs that would end his life. Perry’s parents spoke to the media ahead of the trial, and promised that the defendants would be “going down”.

The beloved star’s passing brought a wave of emotion from fans and co-stars. In January, fellow Friends actor Lisa Kudrow revealed she found a note from Perry in 2004, hidden in a cookie jar, that she had not discovered until recently.

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