Matthew Perry claimed he ‘didn’t remember’ after he proposed to former fiancée Molly Hurwitz when he was ‘high as a kite’ in rehab facility

Late Friends star Matthew Perry said he was ‘high as a kite’ when he proposed to former fiancée Molly Hurwitz in late 2020, during a timeframe he was in rehab in Switzerland.

Perry, who died Saturday at the age of 54, opened up about the uncomfortable chain of events in the memoir he released last year, Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing.

Hurwitz, 32, who works as a literary manager for Thruline Entertainment, was initially linked to the actor in 2018, and the pair were engaged in November of 2020, before parting ways in June of 2021.

In the memoir, Perry did not name Hurwitz, but described the situation that led to their engagement and ultimately, their parting.

Perry said at the time, he had purchased Hurwitz ‘a ring because [he] was desperate that she would leave me’ and that he ‘didn’t want to be this injured and alone during’ the coronavirus pandemic.

He added: ‘I was high on 1,800 milligrams of hydrocodone when I asked her to marry me. I had even asked for her family’s blessing. Then I’d proposed, high as a kite. And on one knee.’

Perry said that after he had sobered up and left the facility, he had been shocked to learn about the engagement, as Hurwitz and her dogs moved into his home in Los Angeles.

‘I was slowly beginning to realize that I was engaged, lived with a woman and two dogs,’ Perry said. ‘Needless to say, I was not ready for any of this. You live with me? We live together?’

Perry went into detail about the life-changing discussions he couldn’t recall, as Hurwitz reminded him.

He said: ‘We have kids’ names picked out, the whole nine yards, which is the name of a movie I once made?’ then writing from Hurwitz’s perspective, ‘You went down on one knee to propose, which really hurt your stomach, remember?’

Perry said he ‘didn’t remember,’ adding that ‘needless to say, we broke up.’

Hurwitz took to Instagram on Monday with a poignant memorial for her former boyfriend. 

‘He would love that the world is talking about how talented he was,’ Hurwitz, 32, said in the caption of a post which showed a pic of Perry’s silhouette set against a wintry city landscape. ‘And he really was very talented.’ 

In her social media post, she Hurwitz recalled how she had a front row seat to see Perry reflect on his performance on the hit NBC comedy – which co-starred Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer – before the show’s reunion was released in May of 2021.

‘As the Friends reunion was approaching, we rewatched the show together,’ Hurwitz said. ‘”F***, I was so good!!!…See what I did there???” We rewound and studied scenes.

‘Our respect and appreciation of humor is something that connected us. Being with him as he rediscovered his brilliance was magical.’

Hurwitz said that she ‘obviously knew that man in a very different way, too,’ saying, ‘While I loved him deeper than I could comprehend, he was complicated, and he caused pain like I’d never known.

‘No one in my adult life has had a more profound impact on me than Matthew Langford Perry. I have tremendous gratitude for that, for everything I learned from our relationship.’

Hurwitz indirectly referenced Perry’s battle with substance abuse throughout much of his life.

‘I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Al Anon, an invaluable resource for those who love someone struggling with this destructive disease,’ she said.

She ended her letter in saying, ‘Matty, I feel relief that you are at peace,’ ending the post, ‘Sincerely, Moll-o-Rama(…fication).’

Perry in June of 2021 told People through a rep of their split, ‘Sometimes things just don’t work out and this is one of them. I wish Molly the best.’

Less than a year prior, following their engagement, Perry described Hurwitz to the publication as ‘the greatest woman on the face of the planet at this time.’

The couple’s split came after Perry was outed for using the dating app Raya, where he allegedly asked a 19-year-old girl, ‘Am I as old as your dad?’ during one flirty exchange. 

Perry was seen in a video posted by TikTok user @kittynichole – real name Kate Haralson – who claims they matched on the membership-only dating service in May last year.

Haralson, now 22, shared the footage of herself with the caption: ‘When you match w Matthew Perry as a joke on a dating app and he facetimes you and plays 20 questions with you.’

In the 16-second video, Perry was seen smiling as he asks his potential date, ‘Do you always play with your hair this much?’ to which she responds, giggling: ‘I guess so.’

Haralson, a personal assistant who says she was 19 when Perry first contacted her, told PageSix on Thursday that she wanted to show how older men in Hollywood are ‘taking advantage’ of younger women on dating apps.

‘A lot of people were saying I’m a bully and mean for posting this, and it made me feel kind of bad, but at the same time, I feel like a lot of guys in Hollywood are talking to all these young girls and it’s something that I think a lot of people should be aware of,’ she told the outlet. 

Hurwitz took to social media to remember the late actor on the same day Perry’s Friends costars Aniston, Cox, Kudrow, LeBlanc and Schwimmer issued a joint statement saying they were ‘all so utterly devastated by the loss of Matthew.

‘We were more than just cast mates,’ the ensemble told People. ‘We are a family. There is so much to say, but right now we’re going to take a moment to grieve and process this unfathomable loss.’

The group concluded in saying, ‘In time we will say more, as and when we are able. For now, our thoughts and our love are with Matty’s family, his friends, and everyone who loved him around the world.’

Friends, which followed the lives of six friends in their 20s living in New York, was a smash hit across the globe when it aired between 1994 and 2004, and re-runs still remain hugely popular years later.

On Sunday, a source Page Six that the cast is ‘reeling’ from the loss of their ‘brother’ Matthew.

‘The cast is reeling from the loss of their brother, because that’s what Matty was — their brother,’ an industry source told the news outlet, adding: ‘It’s just devastating.’

Perry was found underwater in his hot tub by his assistant, who lifted his head up to try to get him some air, first responders have revealed.

But, by the time the Los Angeles Fire Department, arrived at the Friends star’s Pacific Palisades home on Saturday and lifted him out of the jacuzzi, he was already dead.

Captain Erik Scott, with the LAFD said: ‘Los Angeles City Firefighters responded [and] found an adult male unconscious in a stand-alone hot tub.

‘A bystander had brought the man’s head above the water and gotten him to the edge, then firefighters removed him from the water upon their arrival.

‘A rapid medical assessment, sadly, revealed the man was deceased prior to first responder arrival.

‘The circumstances are under investigation by LAPD and the LA County Medical Examiner. We mourn with families and friends who lose a loved one unexpectedly.’

Perry is believed to have drowned, although an official cause of death has not yet been determined.

An initial autopsy result has been ‘deferred’, with toxicology reports set to follow. It comes after a 15-second dispatch call emerged revealing the moment his assistant called 911 to report a cardiac arrest.

The recording of the moment emergency services rushed to the scene was shared which describes a drowning – known as an Emergency Medical Situation 9.

A first responder can be heard saying: ‘Agent 23. Rescue 23. EMS 9 on the radio. In response to the drowning.’

He had not been in his hot tub for very long before his assistant discovered his lifeless body and attempted to resuscitate him, according to a new report. 

Law enforcement sources told TMZ that Perry’s body was not ‘waterlogged’ when emergency services arrived at the actor’s home on Saturday. 

He was pronounced dead at the scene after firefighters lifted him from the jacuzzi. 

The actor was open about his battles with opiates and booze, but said he was clean in recent interviews.

First responders are said to have found anti-depressants and anti-anxiety medications at the property – but there was no sign of any illegal drugs.

The coroner for Los Angeles County has listed Perry’s cause of death as ‘deferred’, pending the final results of toxicology tests.

On Sunday afternoon, the coroner released his body to the family, but said they are yet to determine a cause of death.

The Medical Examiner’s office can release initial results within days, or it can take six to eight weeks for final results of toxicology tests to come back.

Family friends have said the star seemed ‘fatigued’ in his last days, and in his final post on Instagram, shared earlier this week, he posted images of him in his pool.

The caption read: ‘Oh, so warm water swirling around makes you feel good? I’m Mattman.’

Perry said less than a year ago that he was keen to help others who were dealing with a similar situation in terms of battling addiction to drugs or alcohol.

Perry, in a November 2022 appearance on the podcast Q with Tom Power at Toronto’s Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema, said that the ‘paramount thing’ he would want to be remembered for ‘is that he wants to help people’ battling addiction,  

‘The best thing about me, bar none, is that if an alcoholic or drug addict comes up to me and says, “Will you help me?”‘ he said. ‘I can say yes and follow up and do it.

‘When I die, I don’t want Friends to be the first thing that’s mentioned. I want that to be the first thing that’s mentioned, and I’m going to live the rest of my life proving that.’

Perry said that it was difficult for him to watch past episodes of Friends, as he could chart his addiction battle by his appearance on the program.

‘I didn’t watch the show, and haven’t watched the show, because I could go drinking … opiates … drinking … cocaine,’ he said. ‘Like I could tell season by season by how I looked.’ 

Perry called the program ‘an incredible ride’ and said that ‘it’s been an incredible thing to watch it touch the hearts of different generations. 

‘It’s become this important, significant thing and I, you know, I would watch that again. It was really funny, and all the people were nice.’

Perry appeared on the hit series for 10 seasons spanning 1994 until 2004. He had also appeared in a number of motion pictures in his career, including 1997’s Fools Rush In, 2000’s The Whole Nine Yards and 2009’s 17 Again.