Matthew Perry’s final friends mourn star — including assistant who saved his life once before

nypost.com:

addictions that plagued him from creeping across the front door.Before his death on Saturday, aged just 54, in the jacuzzi at the new home he had moved into three weeks ago, the multi-millionaire surrounded himself with friends who really were there for him.His core group included his longtime assistant Briana Bracanto, who with his blessing had just left to become a personal trainer; his sober coach and friend, Erin, who lived with him at his Malibu pad during the pandemic lockdown and even joined him during rehab stints (Perry said she saved his life when his colon burst); and of course his “Friends” co-stars, who regularly checked in on him.But, his long-time friend and former trainer, Jon Paul Crimi, another of the group, told The Post Monday: “Matthew did struggle.

It’s hard because sometimes the people we love the most are the ones we can’t help, like family.”Brancanto, 34, paid a heartfelt tribute to Perry – who played the wisecracking Chandler Bing in the NBC mega-hit – as she thanked the star for allowing her to “take care of him” for 7 years.Perry had revealed in his autobiography that five years ago, aged 49, his colon had burst from opioid abuse, leaving him in a coma for two weeks and recovering in hospital for 5 months.

He credited Brancanto in the book with saving his life. She posted photos of their time together, including lying on the bed and sharing a laugh.“From witnessing him in his genius to sharing in his worldly adventures living around the world, he took me on a remarkable journey,” she wrote on Instagram Monday.“My heart is heavy, but celebrating my memories is the most profound way to honor his legacy,” she added, “I hope that up there, in the great beyond, Mattman is sending us signs.