Michael J Fox has revealed that Matthew Perry has made a sizeable donation to his charity after signing a record-breaking contract with Friends.
Fox founded the Michael J. Fox Foundation in 2000 with the goal of funding research to cure Parkinson’s disease, a disease he was diagnosed with in 1991.
In an interview with “Entertainment Tonight,” the “Back to the Future” actor recalled the late “Friends” star’s generosity when the foundation was just being launched.
Fox, 62, who announced his Parkinson’s diagnosis in 1998, said: “I have to say I prefer to be discreet but I hope he doesn’t mind.”
“When they first had their big sale, whatever they did, and [the Friends cast were] They all made millionaires for the rest of their lives – he wrote a big check to the foundation.’
Old Friends: Michael J Fox has revealed Matthew Perry made a sizeable donation to his charity after signing a record-breaking contract with Friends (pictured together in 2000)
Gone too soon: Fox praised the late actor for helping his foundation in its early days, describing Perry’s act as a “tremendous vote of confidence” (Perry pictured in 2012)
Fox said Perry’s gesture was a “tremendous show of confidence” as it was just early days for the charity.
He explained that the late actor’s kindness didn’t come with a side of boastfulness or arrogance, adding that he liked that it was a “take it and do your best” gesture.
The extreme act of kindness came after Perry – along with Matt LeBlanc, David Schwimmer, Lisa Kudrow, Courteney Cox and Jennifer Aniston – negotiated a groundbreaking check for $1 million per episode for the ’90s sitcom.
The “Friends” cast all agreed that they would leave NBC if they weren’t all compensated equally.
Perry’s donation to the Parkinson’s Foundation didn’t come out of the blue, as the two Canadian-American actors spent a lot of time together over the years and bonded over their shared love of hockey.
The “Back to the Future” actor called Perry – who often publicly bragged about Fox’s talents – a “funny guy” and joked that he was “lucky” that he “had an influence on him.”
Fox’s heartwarming confession comes after Perry passed away on October 28, 2023.
He was discovered in the hot tub of his Los Angeles home and buried on November 3 at Forest Lawn Memorial Park.
His death certificate, obtained by The Blast, indicates his official cause of death is being deferred pending toxicology reports, which could take weeks to determine.
Fighter: Fox was secretly diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 1991 and in 2000 founded his own charity – the Michael J. Fox Foundation – to help find a cure
Teamwork: Perry, Matt LeBlanc, Lisa Kudrow, David Schwimmer, Courteney Cox and Jennifer Aniston negotiated a groundbreaking $1 million per episode check for Friends
The actor is leaving the Matthew Perry Foundation, an organization created to help people “struggling with the disease of addiction.”
Those who recover are guided by Perry’s own experiences and his passion to positively impact as many lives as possible.
The “Friends” star detailed his own struggles with addiction in his 2022 autobiography “Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing.”
While endorsing his novel in an interview with Tom Power, the late actor gushed about fellow actor Michael J Fox.
“I was young, I had done a few plays in school, and Michael J. Fox was it, man,” a smitten Perry said, according to UsWeekly.
“When I was in ninth grade, Michael J. Fox had just done Back to the Future and smoke was coming out of my ears. I was so jealous of this guy.”
Perry praised Fox for the number one show – Family Ties – and the number one movie of the time, quipping:
“It was huge and I don’t know anyone who has done it – except me.”
Life-changer: After his death, the actor left the Matthew Perry Foundation, an organization created to help people “struggling with the disease of addiction.”