Athenna Crosby Shares Matthew Perry’s Optimism and Hopes for ‘Second Act’ Before His Tragic Death

Athenna Crosby, a friend of Matthew Perry who met him a day before his tragic demise, shared exclusive insights with US Weekly about the Friends star's optimistic state of mind and hopeful outlook on life. Perry, best known for his role as Chandler Bing in the hit television series Friends, has always been open about his struggles with addiction. Perry appeared to be in a positive frame of mind just before his tragic death at the age of 54, despite facing numerous challenges and undergoing multiple rehab treatments.

Perry's close friend Crosby provided an intimate look into their final meeting, which took place on Friday, October 27, at the Hotel Bel-Air. Despite only knowing Perry for a short time, Crosby shared that their most recent meeting was filled with warmth and optimism. She revealed that Perry "was talking the whole time and was super excited to be hanging out. It was great. He was in a good state of mind and talking about his life and sharing with me funny stories about his time in the industry." Crosby also revealed that Perry was looking forward to his "second act" and wanted to revitalize his acting career.

She noted, “He was talking about how excited he was to have a second act and had struggles that inhibited his acting aspirations but had turned it all around and was looking forward to getting back into it full swing." "He was very healthy and talking about how he was looking forward to hitting the pickleball court and how he had gotten very into it," Crosby told the outlet. “He was telling me I needed to try it and it was fun. He said he was losing weight and getting in shape. … He was in a positive place and doing so good [and] was being extra healthy.”

Perry told Crosby that he had "really come back strong from" his drinking struggles. “He said for a lot of years he was lost in the addiction and how he fully came out on the other side,” she said. “He was clean and didn’t order a drink. In fact, he didn’t even want a drink menu. He was taking all the temptation out of his life.”

“I was shocked. I had to hear it from the news first. I thought it was so devastating,” Crosby recalled learning of Perry's death. “At the time, I had to pull [my car] over and read it and ask myself if it was true. It’s so disturbing because I had just spoken to him hours before he passed.” Crosby observed Perry to be in a normal and stable state during their last conversation. She stated again, "He was such a good person."