Speaking to Daily Mail, an onlooker said: “She was one of the first to arrive. She kept herself to herself. This is a high-profile gathering.”
Perry had suffered from addiction to alcohol and drugs throughout his life and another insider explained that Aniston had really believed that his “worst days” were in the past and his passing as come as a “bitter body blow” to her.
Matthew Perry's 'Friends' Costars Attend His Funeral in L.A. | Click to read more 👇 https://t.co/lydETFNOhf
The source said: “Nobody shed more tears for Matthew during the darkest points of his struggles with addiction than Jennifer. There was speculation at the time of the 2021 Friends reunion that Matthew wouldn’t be a part of it because his demons had gotten the better of him. But Jennifer absolutely wouldn’t have done it without him.
“He put in the work and made it a success even though he seemed frail. But Jennifer genuinely thought his worst days were behind him. So, his death just two years later has come as a bitter body blow to her.”
It’s not the first time the pair’s close relationship has been revealed. Last year ahead of the release of his memoir Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing, Perry spoke to Diane Sawyer revealing how his co-stars of the hit 90s show supported him: “Jennifer, she says, ‘We know you’re drinking’,” Diane said to the actor. Responding to Sawyer, Perry replied: “Yeah, imagine how scary a moment that was.”
He then went on to reveal: “She was the one that reached out the most. You know, I’m really grateful to her for that.”
The cast of "Friends," from left, Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Matthew Perry, Lisa Kudrow, David Schwimmer and Matt Leblanc during a taping of the "Friends: The Reunion" special. Photo / AP
While it remains unclear exactly how the 17 Again star died, an insider insisted that it is irrelevant whether it was a drowning accident or related to his addiction issues because Aniston had been “dreading” the day for the past 20 years and had striven to help him in any way she could.
The insider added: “It doesn’t matter whether he died as a result of a freak accident or whether it was directly connected to his drug issues, this was a day that Jennifer has dreaded coming for 20 years. She always wanted to help Matthew any way she could – that was a constant for her.”
When Sawyer asked what her former Friends co-star didn’t know about himself and needed to hear, Aniston said: “That he’s alright. He struggled, and we didn’t know. We weren’t equipped to deal with it. Nobody had ever dealt with that.
“And the idea of ever losing him,” she said tearing up.
