Jennifer Aniston Encourages Fans to Continue to 'Celebrate' Matthew Perry's Legacy After His Death

The 'Friends' actress spoke out about her late costar at Sunday's 2024 Critics' Choice Awards

Jennifer Aniston is encouraging fans to keep Matthew Perry's memory alive.

On Sunday, The Morning Show actress attended the 2024 Critics' Choice Awards in Santa Monica, California, where she opened up about the death of her late Friends costar.

Asked by Entertainment Tonight how she hopes Perry's fans continue to honor his legacy, Aniston, 54, told the outlet that they should "celebrate him."

Perry, who struggled with addiction throughout his life, died on Oct. 28 at the age of 54. His death was revealed to be caused by acute effects of ketamine in an autopsy report obtained by PEOPLE in December.

Drowning, coronary artery disease and buprenorphine effects (a medication used to treat opioid use disorder) were also listed as contributing factors in his death, which was ruled accidental.

Related: Jennifer Aniston Shares Behind-the-Scenes Look at Her Prep for 2024 Critics' Choice Awards

Following the news of the loss, Perry's loved ones across the Hollywood community — including all five of his Friends costars — penned touching tributes to him on social media. Perry's family also honored his legacy by establishing a foundation in his name to support those suffering from substance abuse, something the late actor had been planning to do prior to his death.

Back in November, Aniston encouraged her followers online to contribute to the Matthew Perry Foundation, writing on Giving Tuesday that Perry "would have been grateful for the love 🥰.”

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In a new interview with Variety in December, Aniston opened up on how she hoped Perry would be remembered. "He was happy," she said. "I miss him dearly. We all do. Boy, he made us laugh really hard."

She went on to call the countless tributes that poured in following his death "so beautiful."

"I hope he can know that he was loved in a way he never thought he was," the actress told the outlet.

When Aniston broke her silence about the loss of Perry on Nov. 15, she shared one of her final text messages from the actor and remembered how he made everyone "laugh hard."

“Oh boy this one has cut deep ... Having to say goodbye to our Matty has been an insane wave of emotions that I’ve never experienced before," Aniston wrote in her Instagram tribute beside a photo of herself and Perry from the sitcom’s 2004 finale episode.

Related: Matthew Perry Detailed How He Would Want to Be Remembered a Year Before His Death at 54: Watch

"We all experience loss at some point in our lives. Loss of life or loss of love. Being able to really SIT in this grief allows you to feel the moments of joy and gratitude for having loved someone that deep. And we loved him deeply. He was such a part of our DNA."

"We were always the 6 of us," she continued. "This was a chosen family that forever changed the course of who we were and what our path was going to be. For Matty, he KNEW he loved to make people laugh. As he said himself, if he didn't hear the 'laugh' he thought he was going to die. His life literally depended on it. And boy did he succeed in doing just that. He made all of us laugh. And laugh hard."

Aniston went on to say that she had been looking back on the many text message conversations she and Perry had exchanged. "Laughing and crying then laughing again. I'll keep them forever and ever."

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