Elizabeth Hurley says it was a ‘nightmare’ working with Matthew Perry during his addiction

‘You could see he was suffering,’ said the actor of her former co-star

Elizabeth Hurley has said it was a “nightmare” working with Matthew Perry due to his struggles with addiction.

A number of stories have emerged from the Friends star’s recently released memoir – titled Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing. Many of which tackle Perry’s struggles with mental health and substance abuse.

Hurley, 57, starred opposite Perry, 53, in the 2002 romcom Serving Sara.

She told Yahoo! that she had only read excerpts of his book so far.

“It’s quite interesting. He’s a very funny writer like he’s a very funny man. He’s an incredibly gifted comedian… his way with words is fantastic,” she said.

Hurley continued: “I have very fond memories of him. To be honest, it was a nightmare working with him at that time and, as it’s now known, our movie was shut down because of his addiction.”

The model and actor explained that the film was in force majeure at the time, a clause in contracts that frees both parties from an obligation due to unforeseeable circumstances beyond their control.

“We were in a force majeure and had to all sit at home twiddling our thumbs for some time,” Hurley said.

Elizabeth Hurley (ITV)

“It was tough, obviously he was having a tough time, but he was still very charming and a lovely person to work with. But you could see he was suffering for sure.”

Perry – who played Chandler Bing in the 10-season comedy series Friends, which ran from 1994 to 2004 – has been candid about his struggles with substance abuse.

In his memoir, the actor said that fans of the show are able to distinguish whether he was drinking alcohol or taking drugs depending on his appearance in the series.

He also explained how his character came to say the last words in the Friends season 10 finale.

If you have been affected by this article, you can contact the following organisations for support: actiononaddiction.org.uk, mind.org.uk, nhs.uk/livewell/mentalhealth, mentalhealth.org.uk.