Why Courteney Cox And Matthew Perry Thought They Were The Perfect Pairing For Friends
In the wake of Matthew Perry's recent tragic passing at the age of 54, it's worth remembering that Perry was very much the heart of "Friends" throughout all 10 seasons. He had a specific brand of delivery and a unique role in the group. He wasn't as over-the-top as other sitcom staples, but he was the one who made the show what it was, raising it above the other sitcoms of its time. As /Film senior editor Jacob Hall noted, "Ross and Rachel got the headlines. But Chandler was the soul of 'Friends.'"
He didn't just help put the show on the map, but also helped keep it going strong long after most sitcoms would've run out of steam. Chandler's relationship with Courteney Cox's Monica, which came seemingly out of nowhere in the Season 4 finale, quickly escalated to become one of the show's central storylines. Part of why Season 5 is so fondly remembered is because this is when the show seemed to stumble into the realization that Chandler and Monica hooking up wasn't just a source for fun new comedic situations — it turns out these two had genuine chemistry. They were a great fit for each other, in ways that the first four seasons only ever hinted at.
The result is that while Ross and Rachel's romance made up the core of the series, it was Chandler and Monica that led to perhaps the show's greatest, most famous episode, "The One Where Everybody Finds Out." It's not just the funniest episode, as Chandler's secret-keeping escalates into a game of sex chicken with Phoebe, but it's also the sweetest. The episode's title doesn't refer to everyone finding out Chandler and Monica are hooking up; this is them finding out that they're in love.
Courteney Cox said Matthew Perry was like a member of her family
"Matthew is a comic genius, he really is," Courteney Cox explained in "Friends 'til the End," a 2004 companion book for the series written by David Wild. "He uses inflections that only Matthew Perry can do. I think Matthew is just brilliant at delivering lines, and he is also a great dramatic actor... I've learned a lot from him, and we've been through a lot of ups and downs. He's like my family."
The chemistry and respect between the two continued even after "Friends" ended, with the two reuniting for an episode of the 2013 sitcom "Go On." When asked what it was like for the two to play lovers again nearly a decade after "Friends" ended, Cox confirmed that it was very easy to slip into such a role. In fact, she even claimed that nothing had changed between the two stars. Perry agreed, but added one thing that had changed for the two. "The fact that 30 million people aren't watching it. Other than that, it's the same," Perry said.
Matthew Perry also reunited with Cox for an episode of her own sitcom "Cougar Town" in 2013, as well, with the two once again playing each other's love interests. "It was so great to work with him. He's so sweet," Cox told Conan O'Brien at the time.
Matthew Perry also had high praise for his co-star
For Matthew Perry, the feeling was mutual. "Courteney is amazing," he said in "Friends 'Till The End." "She's a brilliantly gifted comedienne and I don't think she knew that at the beginning. But she just grew into it, working with all of us, and bringing her own kind of crazy neurosis to the part. She's an amazing dramatic actress too, and that's what has helped me a great deal in my career and on the show, because we can stop with the joking and have a real moment together."
Although the "Friends" writers originally planned to give Monica a romantic relationship storyline with Joey, most of us can agree that pairing Monica and Chandler was the right choice. The two may not have been planned from the start like Rachel and Ross were, but they ended up being the show's strongest couple. They were the relationship that stayed the most consistent throughout the second half of the series.
Although "Friends" didn't make their intentions clear with Perry and Cox's characters until Season 5, the idea for the two was established as early as Season 2, in the episode where Monica acted as Chandler's personal trainer. "There was a real fun dynamic between the two of them," producer Scott Silveri told Vulture about it in a 2019 piece. "So even as early as that, they said, 'Oh, they're kind of special together. If we're ever looking for another relationship, that's something to file away.'" It took a few years before they followed through on that note, but it was definitely worth the wait.