Matthew Perry's Stepdad and Sister Broke Their Silence on His Heartbreaking Death
"It's shattering."
Matthew Perry's sister and stepdad are opening up for the first time since the actor's heartbreaking death. Keith Morrison and his daughter Caitlin Morrison remembered Perry and reflected on the tragedy during an interview with Hello! Canada. Their words come nearly a year after the Friends star passed away in his home from a lethal amount of ketamine on October 28, 2023.
Caitlin, the executive director of the Matthew Perry Foundation of Canada, told the publication that her work makes her feel "like I'm sitting right next to Matthew, working with him every day on something that was important to him."
"I have this treasure of getting to keep him very, very close to my life all the time, which is wonderful," she continued. "[He] had this ability to fill up a room with light. When people were in a room with [Matthew], there was this magnetic energy. Everybody just had a smile on their face, and they clung to everything that he said."
The Canadian nonprofit, although separate from the U.S.'s Matthew Perry Foundation, was founded by Perry's family and friends following his passing. It expands on the U.S. branch's mission to honor Perry's legacy by helping others in their recovery from addiction.
Caitlin shared some sweet words and memories on the organization's official website. She wrote that she "will always think of herself as Matthew’s kid sister—a wide-eyed girl who thought (still thinks) her brother was the coolest human being who has ever existed."
She also listed things he taught her, including "how to butter popcorn correctly, how to 'edit' a report card [and] how to perform 'Who’s on First' with perfect comedic timing."
"But the best thing he ever taught her was that no matter how many times you fail, you haven’t failed until you stop trying," Caitlin's bio concluded.
The Morrisons entered Perry's life when Keith married the actor's mom, Suzanne Perry, in 1981. "He would like to be remembered for doing something to help people suffering from addiction," Keith said of his stepson.
Keith explained that it was "incredibly shocking" when Perry "suddenly died" last year. He added, "Anybody who has lost a child will tell you that, even if you are in some way prepared for the possibility, it’s shattering. What we have decided to do is hang on to that determination and try to do something useful."
Caitlin wrote in an op-ed for the Toronto Star that the pain she felt following Perry's death was not "unique" but "unusual" due to the news being in the public eye.
"People often assume that the unusual things make the loss harder. They say things like, 'I'm sorry for your loss. Especially with all the attention. It must make it so much harder.' I thank them with sincerity but am often tempted to tell them they are wrong," she wrote. "Loss is a lonely business, and sharing my loss with the world took some of the loneliness out of it."
She credited her late brother with having the gift of making others feel less alone. "Waging that inner war in the limelight brought him the détente of company. It gave his own struggle purpose: he could help others—make them feel less alone," she wrote.