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Matthew Perryfuneral brought together people who shared different chapters of his life, but one moment with the “Friends“The casting left his sister, Mia Perry Bowick, with a memory that she still has.
In a new documentary, Bowick described seeing the actors approach her brother’s coffin, holding hands and looking sad.
Her memoir gave a rare glimpse into the private farewell of Perry, whose death in 2023 shocked fans and former colleagues.
Matthew Perry’s sister recalled the cast’s emotional farewell
according to Page SixBowick said she hadn’t seen the “Friends” cast in about two decades when they arrived at the funeral.
She said Jennifer Aniston approached her first and embraced her before the rest of the cast offered their condolences.
Then came the moment that stayed with her: Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, David Schwimmer and Matt LeBlanc walked towards Matthew Perry’s box together.
Bowick recalled, “And then, the five of them walked up to the casket holding hands and stood around it, crying.”
The account appeared in “The One About Matthew Perry,” a three-episode Netflix documentary exploring Perry’s life, career, relationships, addiction problems and death at 54.
Matha’s sister also felt her sense of humor in the middle of the sadness
The funeral held another unexpected moment for Bowick: she began to laugh as she mourned her brother.
In the documentary, she described feeling Matthew Perry’s presence behind her shoulder and hearing an imaginary narration that resembled his irresponsible sense of humor.
“He looked right behind my right shoulder and said, ‘How good is this?'” Bowick recalled. She said that the moment made her smile despite the sadness that surrounded her. “Oh my god – it’s there!” she remembered thinking.
Mata’s sister also recognized how inappropriate the smile might have looked at such a sad gathering, but she said she couldn’t stop. “Yeah, man, this is really tiring,” she recalled replying.
The director of the documentary Mary MacDonald said Page Six that the story struck her as painful and very human. Robertson said that laughter at a funeral does not erase sadness, describing Bowick’s account as “wrenching and harrowing”.
She said, “I think that’s true to Matthew’s lived experience, true to Matthew’s legacy, and true to our human experience.”
Matthew Perry’s documentary shares his sister’s account, not everyone’s
Robertson announced that the production invited the “Friends” actors to participate, but they declined.
Other relatives of Matthew chose not to appear, including his stepfather, Dateline journalist Keith Morrison.
According to Robertson, she had no regrets with those who stayed away, explaining, “I think everyone is grieving in their own way. And I understand why someone might feel like it’s not the time to talk.”
She said, however, that Bowick was ready to talk about the funeral and her brother. Robertson described her decision to share the memory as “really raw and open and vulnerable and powerful and funny.”
More From The Blast
Mata’s death case reached its sentencing stage with Jasveen Sangha
Matthew Perry died in October 2023 after being found unresponsive in a hot tub at his home in Los Angeles. The medical examiner attributed his death to an adverse effect of ketamine, with drowning listed as a contributing factor.
Jasveen Sangha, who prosecutors described as a drug dealer known as the “Ketamine Queen,” was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison on April 8, 2026, after pleading guilty to five federal drug crimes: one count of maintaining a drug-dealing premises, three counts of distribution of ketamine, and one count of aggravated distribution of bodketamine resulting in death.
According to The Blast, prosecutors said Sangha ran a drug trafficking business from her home in North Hollywood.
In her plea, she admitted that she sold 51 vials of ketamine to Erik Fleming, who supplied the drug to Mata through his personal assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa.
At least some of these vials were used in the injections Matthew received shortly before his death.
Sangha also admitted to selling ketamine in connection with another man’s fatal overdose in 2019, a separate part of the case.
Matthew Perry’s Assistant Kenneth Iwamasa was sentenced to prison
Iwamasa was also sentenced to 41 months in federal prison in May 2026 for his role in the ketamine scheme.
According to court documents, Iwamasa worked with Fleming and others to secure ketamine for Mata. He bought 51 vials from Fleming over 11 days in October 2023.
Iwamasa had no medical training, but Dr. Salvador Plasencia had shown him how to inject the Hollywood star.
Prosecutors said Iwamasa repeatedly administered the drug, despite observing that Matthew was having a frightening experience, including not being able to move or speak.
On October 28, Iwamasa charged Perry with at least three shots of ketamine supplied through Fleming and Sangha.
Perry died that day. The Justice Department said Iwamasa later reported to police that he hid the injection, intentionally left ketamine off Perry’s medication list, and removed or destroyed evidence related to drug use.
At the sentencing, the judge imposed the 41-month term and a $10,000 fine.
