Fans react to Matthew Perry’s ‘sad’ moments in the Friends Reunion

Viewers and critics alike thought Matthew Perry cut a “lonely” figure during the long-awaited Friends reunion.

Matthew Perry’s appeareance on the Friends reunion has concerned his legion of fans, with many pointing out he seemed like he was “struggling”.

Critics also noted that the 51-year-old gave an “uneasy” presence in contrast to his five upbeat co-stars.

Though he didn’t discuss it in the special episode, Perry, who played Chandler Bing, has previously been open about his battle with addiction, which affected his time on the ‘90s sitcom and saw him enter rehab twice.

And there were several awkward moments during the reunion which left viewers feeling distressed for Perry, whose reserved attitude was a far cry from the hilarious character he portrayed on screen.

RELATED: Read our recap of the Friends reunion

Fans couldn't help but notice that Matthew Perry looked incredibly different. Picture: Binge

There was one moment where Perry was sitting on the interview couch across from host James Corden, along with his co-stars Jennifer Aniston, David Schwimmer, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow and Matt LeBlanc.

Corden asked if they all still keep in touch, to which Perry responded that he “doesn’t hear from anyone.”

It was met with a few awkward laughs from his fellow actors before fading into the next scene, making it hard to tell whether or not it was just a dry joke.

Toward the end of the show, Corden asked Cox where Monica and Chandler would be now 17 years on, to which Cox responded by only discussing her own character.

“Monica is still really competitive, her kids are probably graduated and she’s still in charge of the bake sale at elementary school,” Cox began.

Perry began pointing at himself with a gobsmacked face before frantically waving at Cox.

“And YOU are making me laugh everyday,” she said to Perry.

“Just wanted to make sure I factored in there somewhere,” Perry added.

Stream the Friends reunion only on BINGE. New customers get a 14-day free trial and start streaming instantly. Sign up at binge.com.au

Cox began discussing her own character without mentioning Chandler.

In a sadder moment, Perry told his cast mates as they visited the Central Perk set that he “felt like I was going to die” if his jokes didn’t get laughs from the live audiences.

“It’s not healthy, for sure, but I would sometimes say a line and they wouldn’t laugh and I would sweat and just, like, go into convulsions,” Perry said. “If I didn’t get the laugh I was supposed to get, I would freak out.”

A concerned Kudrow said, “You didn’t tell us that then. I don’t remember you ever saying that.”

“Oh, yeah,” Perry responded. “I felt like that every single night.”

At the end, Perry broke down in tears as he discussed his special friendship with his co-stars.

“The best way that I can describe it is after the show was over, at a party or any social gathering, if one of us bumped into each other that was it, that was the end of the night, you just sat with that person all night long,” Perry said to his co-stars.

“You apologised to the people that you were with but they had to understand, you had met somebody special to you and you were going to talk to that person for the rest of the night.

“That’s the way it worked. It’s certainly the way it worked for all of us.”

He added: “I’m going to cry now.”

Perry was comforted by Aniston.

Viewers were overwhelmed with emotion following his sombre appearance.

Absolutely loved #FriendsTheReunion the laughs, the tears and the genuine emotion!

But … I must say, Matthew Perry seemed to be struggling more than the others. I think he needs a hug 🤗 #Friendspic.twitter.com/9X8XZ1exQy

— Carly ~ A More Intentional Life (@momof2lgs) May 27, 2021

i wanted matthew perry to speak more :(

— kareema and 2 others (@kareemabarry) May 27, 2021

It was lovely to see the gang back together. Felt that Matthew Perry cut a rather solitary figure at times. I wanted to reach out and give him a huge hug. #FriendsReunion

— Emmakin Skywalker 🇪🇺🌱🏳️‍🌈 (@ecrjones) May 27, 2021

Matthew Perry.....what a guy, he’s been through hell. Whatever his struggles he still came out on stage for all of us, so we could all relive some magic #FriendsTheReunion#MatthewPerry

— Louise McConnell (@zezzy79) May 27, 2021

I just want to scoop Matthew Perry up and give him the biggest hug, he looks like everything is so tough for him. #FriendsReunion

— kaphc (@kaphc) May 27, 2021

It comes after the promo dropped last week, where Perry was questioned about his seemingly slurred speech.

It was reportedly due to an emergency dental procedure not a drugs relapse, a source claimed.

A source has told The Sun he had not had a substance addiction relapse despite speculation.

“Matthew turned up to the reunion and members of his team said that he had an emergency tooth procedure that day,” the source said.

“He had been in pain from what we understand, which caused the slurred speech.

“Matthew has told those around him that he is sober, and there is no need to worry.”

Friends: The Reunion is available to stream on Binge