Matthew Perry likes to make people 'smile' amid pain

Minnie Driver and Matthew Perry shared the stage 20 years ago. But the actress still remembered what made the latter special: his ability to make people "feel good" despite his suffering.

Writing in The Guardian, the Tarzan star remembered having lunch with him with her family at the time of their play's rehearsal two decades ago.

"The restaurant put us in the back away from people, but when he walked in ... the whole place lit up. The whole place smiled," she penned.

At the time, the late actor was struggling with his bouts of addiction; the author noted, "I found it incredibly hard to read and had to put it down and pick it up again — it felt unbearable, how much he suffered."

However, commending the Friends star, Minnie shared, "had been in a good place when we were doing the play, but the thing about him was he was like a light. He was one of those people who just made other people feel good."

She continued, "Somehow, they don't suck you down into their sadness or their pain, and I know now that his pain was great."