‘I said something stupid’: Matthew Perry says nasty comments about Keanu Reeves will be omitted from future copies of his memoir
Matthew Perry says nasty comments he made about Keanu Reeves in his memoir released last fall, Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing, will be omitted from future issues.
The 53-year-old Friends actor raised his eyebrows last year and apologized after asking why Reeves “still walks among us” when colleagues like River Phoenix and Chris Farley had passed away prematurely.
The Williamstown, Massachusetts native appeared on the Saturday Los Angeles Times Festival of Books at USC’s Bovard Auditorium, where he told a panel that “future versions of the book will not feature his name.”
Perry, who played Chandler Bing in the NBC hit, complained about the mistake at the event, where he was promoting the book.
“I said something stupid… it was a mean thing to do,” Perry said, adding that he has “publicly apologized to” the John Wick actor.
The latest: Matthew Perry, 53, says nasty comments he made about Keanu Reeves in his memoir released last fall, Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing, will be omitted from future issues. Pictured at the LA Times Festival of Books at USC
Perry said he made the decision to withhold comments about Reeves in part because the actor is a neighbor of his.
“I drew his name because I live on the same street,” Perry said, adding that he hasn’t personally told Reeves he regrets the comments, but that he would if given the chance.
“If I come across that guy, I’ll apologize — it was just stupid,” he said.
In the book released last November, Perry referenced Reeves when he spoke of the death of Phoenix on October 31, 1993, whom Reeves appeared opposite in 1991’s My Own Private Idaho.
Perry wrote, “River was a beautiful man inside and out—too beautiful for this world, as it turned out.
“It always seems to be the really talented guys that go down. How come original thinkers like River Phoenix and Heath Ledger die, but Keanu Reeves still walks among us?’
Perry made a second reference to Reeves when reflecting on Chris Farley’s fatal overdose in December 1997.
He said, “I punched a hole in the wall of Jennifer Aniston’s dressing room when I found out. Keanu Reeves walks between us.
Amid backlash, Perry apologized for the references to Reeves in his book. He said in a statement, “I’m actually a huge fan of Keanu. I just chose a random name, my mistake. I apologize. I should have used my own name instead.”
A source close to Reeves said so Us weekly that the A-lister “thought the comments came from left field,” adding, “It kind of backfires on Matthew anyway, which is why he had to apologize.”
Perry raised eyebrows last year and apologized after asking why Reeves “still walks among us” when peers like River Phoenix and Chris Farley had passed away prematurely. Reeves was photographed in LA earlier this month
The Williamstown, Massachusetts native appeared Saturday at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books at USC’s Bovard Auditorium, where he told a panel that “future versions of the book will not feature his name.”