‘Friends’ Star Maggie Wheeler Praises Matthew Perry For ‘Showing Up’ Amid Addiction (Exclusive)
Maggie Wheeler discussed Matthew Perry’s candid new memoir, in which he detailed his addiction struggles while on ‘Friends.’
Maggie Wheeler‘s iconic Janice voice continues to withstand the test of time, just as the entire Friends franchise does. The mother-of-two who starred as Chandler Bing’s longtime on-again, off-again girlfriend, sat down with HollywoodLife.com and discussed her time on the show, while promoting the new FRIENDS Manhattan Hazelnut Mocha creamer from International Delight! Maggie opened up about working alongside Matthew Perry in the midst of his dark addiction struggles, which he recently discussed in his new memoir. “When we were working together, I certainly knew that he was having difficulties... I lost a brother to drug addiction, so I’m no stranger to it. And there were times that we sat and talked about it,” she recalled in an EXCLUSIVE interview with HL. “But Matthew is the consummate professional, and he showed up 100% to his job. Even when he was in the worst condition, he showed up, he was on time, he knew his lines.”
Maggie continued, “There was never a moment sitting on the stage with him where his struggles were evident in the work. He’s brilliant, really brilliant.” The actress went on to say how “extraordinary” it was to consider that Matthew was “able to show up” in such a way after the “dark” revelations in his book. “His humor was always there,” she remembered. “He was always in charge of that. He always knew how to do his work. He’s such a phenomenal actor, and he’s so damn funny.”
“I’m just so proud of Matthew and I think he did such an incredible job writing about his story and sharing so candidly about his struggle,” Maggie gushed. “I think that he’s made a huge difference in the world by doing that for so many people who struggle similarly.”
The Parent Trap actress went on to praise Friends and its legacy, while speaking to HL at the FRIENDS Experience in New York City. “There’s just something that is so relatable about the humanity of all of these characters that we don’t only see ourselves in one of them, we see ourselves in all of them,” she reminisced. “I meet people who go to sleep watching the show, it calms them down. It’s their best friend in times of hardship and need. I just think it’s extraordinary.”
International Delight partnered with Maggie to help release their new FRIENDS Manhattan Hazelnut Mocha Creamer, inspired by Central Perk’s Manhattan Mocha coffee. “I’m very happy because when we were on the show, they gave the cast of Friends these fantastic coffee makers, and so I have this beautiful espresso maker that says Friends on it on my kitchen counter… And this creamer is delicious, so I can’t wait to add some when I get home!” Maggie revealed. Could this news BE any better?! Yes! On shelves now nationwide, International Delight’s new FRIENDS-themed creamer is also available in a Zero Sugar variety!