News of Matthew Perry’s tragic death sent shockwaves through the world. Family, friends and fans found themselves sharing grief for an actor who held a special place in their hearts.
After being found dead at his Los Angeles home on October 28, the suspected cause of death accidental drowning, many found solace in re-reading his 2022 memoir, Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing, others turned to his films like Three to Tango, 17 Again and Numb, but a huge majority returned to the place they were first introduced to Perry — the hugely successful ‘90s show Friends.
Having won the hearts of many with his portrayal as the sarcastic and caring Chandler Bing, it’s perhaps no surprise that the show — which ran between 1994 and 2004 and followed the lives of six friends in their 20s living in New York — was a comfort for many affected by the actor’s untimely passing.
With double-episode reruns airing on TVNZ and quickly returning to the “Popular on Netflix” section on the streaming service, the world has once more turned their attention to the other cast members of the show: Courteney Cox, Matt LeBlanc, Lisa Kudrow, David Schwimmer and Jennifer Aniston.
The show was so popular its final episode was watched by an estimated 52.5 million American viewers. It was nominated for 62 Primetime Emmy Awards and in 2013 - almost 10 years after the series wrapped - and was named the 24th best-written TV series of all time, according to the Writers Guild of America.
The cultural impact didn’t stop there. In its heyday, the show inspired fashion trends, such as “The Rachel” - a Rachel Green-inspired haircut, seen around the world. Joey Tribiani’s catchphrase “How you doin’?” became ubiquitous. The show was also credited with helping non-English speakers learn the language and Friends maintained its popularity so well that in 2021 an emotional reunion was filmed, Variety reporting it pulled in a huge viewership. It was estimated 29 per cent of US households watched the reunion show, as well as 5.3 million UK viewers.
Now, almost 20 years after the final episode aired, the Herald looks at just how well the show set up its stars and where their careers have taken them.
Fans fell in love with Perry for his sarcastic yet sweet character, Chandler Bing. Known for provoking laughs, inducing tears and forgoing his fear of commitment to marry his love interest Monica Geller (Cox), it was easy to see why he became an instant fan favourite.
Like his five co-stars, Perry was taking home US$22,500 ($37,747) per episode in season one, but thanks to the success of the show — and selfless negotiation by Aniston and Schwimmer — by their final season, the cast were earning US$1 million ($1.68m) per episode, becoming some of the highest-paid actors in television in the early 2000s. Their Friends salary would continue in years to come thanks to syndication payments — which they won when negotiating season six payments.
In the years after the show concluded, Perry would pick up the odd acting gig including the 2009 hit film 17 Again in which he starred alongside Hollywood heart-throb Zac Efron. The same year he appeared in The Good Wife and later in 2011 he starred in Mr Sunshine before signing on for The Odd Couple in 2015.
While Perry remained a busy actor, with castings topping up his already huge net worth from 10 seasons of Friends, he still struggled with the substance abuse problems that had plagued him since he was a teenager.
Following a struggle with addiction, the star underwent surgery in 2018 for gastrointestinal perforation and over the course of his life attended 6000 Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and entered rehab 15 times. Upon getting sober, the star dedicated his life to helping others and bravely detailed his past struggles in his 2022 memoir. Unfortunately, his life was cut short at age 54, after he was found dead at his Los Angeles home on October 28.
At the time of his death, Celebrity Net Worth estimated the star was worth US$120m ($201m).
She may be most well known for her iconic performance of “Smelly Cat”, when she was portraying the quirky Phoebe Buffay on Friends, but Kudrow, 60, has had her fair share of fame outside of her iconic character.
After Friends, Kudrow had a starring role in the comedy movie Romy and Michelle’s High School Reunion, arguably her most iconic film role. She also starred in many TV series - including HBO’s The Comeback, of which she was the co-creator, writer and star. The actress earned an Emmy nomination for the show in 2006 but lost out to Julia Louis-Dreyfus, who won for The New Adventures of Old Christine.
In the years after, the star has earned herself more than 15 awards and nominations, most notably for her work as an executive producer on Who Do You Think You Are?, and starred in many popular films including P.S. I Love You (2007), The Girl on the Train (2016) and Better Nate Than Ever (2022).
Now living in Beverly Hills with her husband, advertising exec Michel Stern, whom she married in 1995, and son Julian, The Daily Mail has reported she is worth US$130m ($218m).
He was the iconic Ross Geller, a goofy palaeontologist brother of Monica (Cox), and the man who won the heart of the shopping-obsessed runaway bride, Rachel Green (Aniston).
Despite their on-off relationship, the characters were a huge success with fans and even resulted in the pair earning more than their castmates after excess screen time in season two — that is until Schwimmer and Aniston and their four castmates negotiated for equal pay, Aniston telling The Wall Street Journal: “It would’ve destroyed us, I think, if someone was soaring financially.”
In the years since the hit show ended, Schwimmer, now 56, went on to star in the hit children’s film Madagascar as Melman the Giraffe and in 2007 made his directorial debut with the Simon Pegg film Run Fatboy, Run.
He also had a memorable turn as Captain Herbert Sobel in the World War II show Band of Brothers.
With a huge amount of career success behind him, the actor invested in property, purchasing a US$4.1m ($6.8m) New York City East Village townhouse in 2011 and continued to build his acting portfolio after landing the role of Robert Kardashian in The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story. Most recently, he has starred in The Great Celebrity Bake Off and the British sitcom Intelligence.
Celebrity Net Worth places the star at having a net worth of about US$120m ($201m).
She may have started the show as Monica Geller, who initially spent the early seasons dating Dr Richard Burke (Tom Selleck), but by the time season six rolled around, the cleaning-obsessed character was proposed to by Chandler (Perry). Welcoming twins near the end of the series, the new family of four relocated to the suburbs and lived happily ever after.
After the show’s director said “cut” for the final time, Cox, 59, appeared to take a small acting break, but it wasn’t for long. In 1996 she had a starring role in Wes Craven’s slasher film Scream and in 2009 she returned to our screens for yet another iconic sitcom, Cougar Town. Starring as Jules, she delighted fans by bringing onboard her Friends co-stars for a brief reunion with Kudrow appearing in season one, Aniston appearing in season two and Perry in season five.
In the years following, Cox has had a turn at directing, and her most recent work saw her reprise her role as Gale Weathers in Scream VI earlier this year.
Residing in a seafront home in Malibu after selling her 25th-floor apartment in the Hollywood Hills’ Sierra Tower Building for $4.5m ($7.5m), the star is reportedly worth US$150m ($251.6m) according to Celebrity Net Worth.
He was loved for his playful, flirtatious portrayal of Joey Tribbiani. From his iconic one-liner “How you doin’?” to his admirable would-do anything attitude towards his friends, the star was easily loveable and no one questioned why.
Following the conclusion of Friends, the actor quickly invested in real estate, purchasing a US$7.4m (12.4m) Pacific Palisades Spanish-style villa, according to the The Daily Mail. However, after a short stint living in the villa, he capitalised on it even further opting to rent it out for more than $12,000 ($20,131) per month.
And it seems property wasn’t his only investment. As a known car lover, LeBlanc, 56, was quick to acquire a series of lavish and expensive motor vehicles including a Porsche 911 930, Porsche 911 Carrera 4 GTS and a Ferrari 360 Modena.
Continuing to act in the Friends spin-off show Joey, which ran from 2004 to 2006, he also starred as himself in the British TV comedy Episodes, which earned him a Golden Globe in 2012, and hosted the BBC’s Top Gear following the departures of Jeremy Clarkson.
According to Celebrity Net Worth, the actor has the smallest net worth of all his Friends co-stars, an estimated US$85m ($142.6m).
As Rachel Green, Jennifer Aniston was an instant fan favourite, becoming one of the first of the six actors to earn a higher salary. And it seems the career-driven, ambitious and fashionable Rachel we all know and love wasn’t only successful in the show but also outside it.
Once Friends wrapped in 2004, Aniston, now 54, quickly made moves in Hollywood, pivoting her career to films. Starring in multiple blockbusters such as Marley and Me, We’re the Millers, Horrible Bosses and Just Go With It, the star has become a regular collaborator with Adam Sandler thanks to their undeniable on-screen chemistry.
As well as becoming one of Hollywood’s most successful actresses, Aniston has capitalised on brand deals, working with the likes of Aveeno and Pvolve, and has her own vegan hair product range, LolaVie. In terms of assets, The Daily Mail reports the star has a lavish US$14.8m ($24.8m) home in Montecito, California, neighbouring Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.
And in 2008, she expanded her empire even more by teaming up with Kristin Hahn to create Echo Films, an American production company. Working on multiple successful productions, the company has also helped launch Aniston’s most recent venture, Apple TV+’s popular The Morning Show, which she stars in, is an executive producer on, and won an SAG Award for.
Becoming the most successful of the Friends cast, the actress is worth an estimated US$320m ($536.8m) according to Celebrity Net Worth.
Lillie Rohan is an Auckland-based reporter covering lifestyle and entertainment stories who joined the Herald in 2020. She specialises in all things relationships and dating, great Taylor Swift ticket wars and TV shows you simply cannot miss out on.
The Kiwi actor has been part of the Star Wars universe for more than 20 years.