Before he moved to New York at 17 to try to become a model, LeBlanc, who grew up as an only child, was working as a carpenter in Massachusetts. When he auditioned for Friends he had just $11. By the end, he was earning $1 million an episode.
After achieving global fame and fortune with Friends, LeBlanc retreated from the spotlight after his spin-off show Joey was cancelled in 2006. He said: “I barely left the house. I wanted to not have a schedule, not be somewhere. I almost had a nervous breakdown.”
He was coaxed out of his hiatus by Friends co-creator David Crane to play an exaggerated version of himself in the sitcom Episodes. A big car enthusiast, he hosted Top Gear in both the UK and the US, but in 2022 he announced he was “on a break”, in the immortal words of Friends. “I’m taking some time off right now,” he said. “I’m just enjoying not having to do anything – it’s been kinda nice.”
Of course, LeBlanc, who is worth a reported $85 million, never needs to work again. But without a project to focus on, friends are reportedly worried that grief could consume him. “All of the Friends cast have faced challenges moving beyond their iconic roles because the success of the show set an incredibly high bar – how do you shake that label and find equally defining projects?” says Trice. “Who knows really when Matt will feel ready to explore new roles, or if he ever will. But for now I think the most important thing is allowing him the time and space to decide what comes next on his own terms.”
This isn’t the first time LeBlanc has attracted concern. In 2012 he told an interviewer: “People will always ask me if I’m all right, because I’m much more low-key and reserved than my character in Friends. They think that I’m depressed, or I’m sad or upset – but I’m just not amped up to go out in front of an audience and do a TV show. That’s not who I am.”
Perry’s tragic demise has been dragged into the spotlight in recent weeks, as those around him are charged with supplying him with the ketamine that killed him. In October, one of Perry’s doctors, Mark Chavez, 54, became the third person to plead guilty (to conspiring to distribute ketamine) in the aftermath of the Friends star’s fatal overdose last year. Sentencing will take place in 2025.