Jennifer Aniston, 54, is reportedly planning her own special private get-together to celebrate the life of her late friend Matthew Perry. The actress is gathering the Friends cast to honor the actor, who passed away of “acute effects of ketamine” at the age of 54, at her Bel-Air, CA home, according to OK! Magazine. Although the cast, which includes Jennifer, Matt LeBlanc, Courteney Cox, and Lisa Kudrow, all attended Matthew’s funeral, a source said Jennifer wanted to do something special just for them around the holidays.
“It was always their plan to get-together just the five of them, so they could feel comfortable about saying whatever’s on their minds,” the souce told the outlet.
“They’ll reminisce about some of their favorite times with Matt and share stories and laugh and cry,” they added. “The funeral was such a sad occasion, but it was mainly for Matt’s family, and they held back out of respect for them.”
“There will undoubtedly be tears,” the source also said about the upcoming emotional event. “They wonder what more they could have done. But they don’t want to make their get-together a downer. This is about honoring their friend.”
The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed that Matthew’s official cause of death was “acute effects of ketamine” earlier this week. The beloved star had been open about his struggles with alcohol and pain pills in the past and even wrote about ketamine in his 2022 memoir, Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing.
“Ketamine was a very popular street drug in the 1980s. There is a synthetic form of it now,” he wrote. “Has my name written all over it — they might as well have called it ‘Matty.’” He also referred to the drug as a “giant exhale,” and revealed he would “disassociate” while receiving the treatment.
As family, friends, and fans cope with the cause of Matthew’s death, Jennifer’s gathering should help in the healing process since her home is known to have a “Zen feel” to it.
“She has an amazing house and the Zen feel of her place is exactly what the occasion calls for,” the source shared. “She’s planning a really nice evening with good food, some wine and lots of candles and soft music. She’ll break out the photo albums and candid videos and maybe even have a slide show.”
