Credit : Netflix
Netflix has released The One About Matthew Perry, a three-part documentary series about the late Friends star, telling the story of his career, his long struggle with addiction and his death through the people who knew him best. All three episodes premiered on October 27, 2026, and are now streaming on the platform.
Although it has been widely described as a new Netflix series, the title is a documentary series rather than a scripted drama. Netflix lists it as a limited documentary series of three episodes, each running about an hour, and rates it TV-MA. Its official synopsis says the series “chronicles the Hollywood success, outspoken advocacy and tragic death of the beloved ‘Friends’ star, as told by his inner circle.”
The series is directed by Emmy winner Mary Robertson, who previously made the documentary series Quiet on Set, and is produced by Maxine Productions, part of Sony Pictures Television. According to Netflix’s Tudum, the executive producers are Mary Robertson, Lisa Kalikow, Eli Holzman and Aaron Saidman, with Lora Moftah as co-executive producer and Jessica Call as producer.
The central voice in the documentary is Perry’s sister, Mia Perry Bowick. Netflix says the series is anchored by never-before-heard testimonies from her and from his lifelong best friends, and that it includes unreleased photos and videos from the Perry family’s private archive. Variety’s review names his close friends Roger Castillo and David Pressman among the contributors, alongside former partners, fellow people in recovery and director Jonathan Lynn, who worked with Perry on The Whole Nine Yards.
TVLine reported that people who worked on Friends also take part, including Jeff Strauss, a writer and producer on the first season, and Warren Littlefield, the former president of NBC Entertainment who approved the sitcom’s pilot. However, Perry’s five Friends co-stars were not interviewed. Netflix confirmed they appear only through archival footage.
The three episodes follow Perry’s life in order. According to Netflix’s episode guide, Part I follows him from class clown to aspiring actor and his casting on Friends. Part II covers his increasingly public battle with addiction and the cycle of rehab and relapse. Part III follows his recovery after a harrowing medical scare and the new drug treatment that, in Netflix’s words, “spirals instead to a fatal tragedy.”
Perry played Chandler Bing across 236 episodes of Friends from 1994 to 2004. He died in October 2023, at the age of 54, from an accidental overdose. Variety notes that the series addresses the criminal cases that followed, which led to convictions of the people who supplied him with ketamine, including his live-in assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa. These are covered in the final minutes of the series through interviews that include a former US Attorney.
Early critical reaction has focused on the documentary’s intimate tone rather than on any new revelations. Variety’s review called it a “crushingly sad story” of a man whose talent and success were not enough to overcome a chronic disease. It also said the series offers no bombshell revelations, as Perry had already spoken openly about much of his struggle, including in his 2022 memoir. The review noted that the series uses archival recordings of Perry’s own voice and does not use AI techniques to recreate him.
Netflix has warned that the series deals with sensitive subjects, including substance abuse, addiction, drug use and death, and contains strong language. Viewers affected by these issues are encouraged to seek support from local health services.
Netflix has not announced any further instalments, and the documentary is billed as a limited series.
Sources: Netflix Tudum, Netflix, Variety, TVLine.
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