What's life without Friends? Jennifer Aniston is currently struggling to keep her calm amid the irrevocable loss of her beloved pal, Matthew Perry. Reportedly, among the remaining five cast members of the iconic American sitcom, the Murder Mystery star has been grappling with the loss most acutely, as revealed by the sources.
Image Source: Getty Images | Photo by Warner Bros. Television
The friends of the 54-year-old are concerned about her in the wake of Perry's death. Apparently, for Aniston, it's a double whammy as the actress lost her father, John Aniston, less than a year back in November 2022. And she was equally close to her co-actor whom she considered her brother [Perry], who passed away on October 28, 2023.
The Fools Rush In actor was found unresponsive inside his hot tub by his assistant and was later declared dead from an apparent drowning. The surviving cast members of Friends mourned his loss during his funeral, accompanying his family, who were equally devastated.
Image Source: Getty Images | Photo by Kevin Mazur
However, sources revealed Aniston was noticeably grief-stricken, which worried her people. "Out of the remaining five, Jen and Courteney [Cox] are reeling the most, and Jen is probably the one who is struggling most acutely," reported Page Six. The insider also highlighted the gravity of her pain due to a personal loss she suffered last year.
"It's a second massive loss in less than a year, with the one-year anniversary of her dad's death just around the corner," the source continued. "She still hasn't fully regained her footing from that, and now this has just completely knocked her off her feet." The insider added, "She is trying to regroup and recover, but it's been a completely devastating blow."
Apparently, Aniston was immensely close to her father, John, who was a star of Days of Our Lives, the NBC daytime drama from the 1960s. She posted a heartbreaking tribute on her Instagram account with rare and precious photos from her childhood, and alongside, she wrote a lengthy but emotional caption for her father.
"Sweet papa… John Anthony Aniston. You were one of the most beautiful humans I ever knew. I am so grateful that you went soaring into the heavens in peace – and without pain," she wrote. He died at the age of 89. Her father's loss was followed by Perry's under a year, and she joined the rest of her Friends group to bid their last goodbyes to him.
They all gathered at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Los Angeles, solemn and dressed in black. The private funeral was attended by Perry's 84-year-old mother, Suzanne Morrison, 76-year-old Dateline journalist stepfather Keith, and his 82-year-old father, John Perry, per Daily Mail.
An onlooker reported, "Ms. Aniston was one of the first to arrive. She kept herself to herself. This is a high-profile gathering." Previously, in an interview with Diane Sawyer, Perry revealed his struggles with alcohol and drug addiction. He said that during the early days of his substance abuse, Aniston kept checking in on him.
Perry revealed, "She was the one that reached out the most. You know, I'm really grateful to her for that," per The Hollywood Reporter. And in a resurfaced interview from 2004, Aniston cried over the "idea of losing" her beloved friend to drugs. She said, "He struggled. And we didn't know. We weren't equipped to deal with it. Nobody had ever dealt with that."
