“Friends” saw an increase in viewing after the death of Matthew Perry

“Friends ” became the fourth most watched production on streaming in the United States in the week following the death of actor Matthew Perry, who played Chandler Bing. The series soared in the weekly rankings released by Nielsen, a global company responsible for analyzing audiences, following the death of actor Matthew Perry in October this year.

The sitcom was the fourth most streamed title between October 30th and November 5th on streaming platforms, with a total of 860 million minutes watched. According to the company, the number represents a 48% increase compared to the previous viewing period, which ended the day after Matthew’s death. The 10 seasons of “Friends” are available on HBO Max.

First place went to “Spider-Man: Through the Spider-Verse”, a film released in 2023 that was available on Netflix in the United States and was watched for more than a billion minutes. The series “Greys Anatomy” came in second place, with one billion minutes watched and “Suits” was the production that took third place, with 914 million minutes watched

HBO Max even included a tribute to Matthew Perry before every episode of the 10 seasons of “Friends”.

“In memory of Matthew Perry 1969-2023,” reads the tribute image, which flashes on the screen for approximately five seconds before the iconic “Friends” opening sequence begins.

The death of Matthew Perry

Matthew Perry was found dead in a jacuzzi at his home in Los Angeles, United States, on October 28. Initially, the hypothesis is that he drowned due to a sudden illness and initial toxicological tests rule out the presence of substances such as fentanyl or methamphetamine, according to information from TMZ.

Matthew Perry had a private funeral in Los Angeles, attended by the other members of “Friends”: Jennifer Aniston, Lisa Kudrow, Courteney Cox, David Schwimmer and Matt LeBlanc. On social media, the eternal friends published tributes and celebrated Matthew’s life.