Gwyneth Paltrow penned a touching tribute to Matthew Perry after the actor’s death.
The Goop creator posted a throwback photo of the late “Friends” alum via Instagram Sunday, describing their “magical summer” fling in the caption.
“I met Matthew Perry in 1993 at the Williamstown Theater Festival in Massachusetts,” the actress, 51, wrote. “We were both there for most of the summer doing plays. He was so funny and so sweet and so much fun to be with.
“We drove out to swim in creeks, had beers in the local college bar, kissed in a field of long grass,” Paltrow continued. “It was a magical summer.”
She noted that, at the time, Perry “had shot the pilot of ‘Friends’ … [but] it had not aired yet.”
“He was nervous, hoping his big break was just around the corner,” Paltrow noted. “It was. We stayed friends for a while until we drifted apart, but I was always happy to see him when I did.”
She concluded, “I am super sad today, as so many of us are. I hope Matthew is at peace at long last. I really do.”
News broke on Saturday that Perry died at age 54, found dead in his jacuzzi from an apparent drowning.
The Emmy nominee, who is best known for playing Chandler Bing on the long-running sitcom from 1994 to 2004, did not have illicit drugs at his Los Angeles home at the time of his death, according to TMZ.
However, the outlet reported multiple prescription drugs found on the premises.
Perry’s main “Friends” castmates — Courteney Cox, David Schwimmer, Jennifer Aniston, Matt LeBlanc and Lisa Kudrow — have yet to speak out on the tragedy but are preparing a joint statement, an industry source told us over the weekend.
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“The cast is reeling from the loss of their brother, because that’s what Matty was — their brother,” the insider added. “It’s just devastating.”
Perry’s family members and the show’s creators have all shared tributes to the sitcom star, as well as Kathleen Turner and Morgan Fairchild, who played his parents onscreen.
Fairchild remembered Perry as a “brilliant” actor via Twitter, while Turner told People, “It’s extremely sad when you think about how young [he was].”
