Matthew Perry Wanted Former Co-Star to Play Him in Biopic

Matthew Perry was focusing on a possible biopic the day before the Friends actor died, his friend Athenna Crosby tells Entertainment Tonight, with a wish for one of his former co-stars to portray him. The actor, who was found dead at 54 after an apparent drowning Saturday, was photographed having lunch with Crosby the day before his passing, prompting her to speak out about Perry’s mindset at the time.

The star was “enthusiastic” and “absolutely looking forward to life,” Crosby told the outlet, and was even planning out a biopic about his life starring Zac Efron as the younger version of himself. “He said that he wanted to make a movie about his life,” Crosby, 25, said. Having worked with Efron in the 2009 comedy 17 Again, which features Perry and the High School Musical star playing older and younger versions of the main character, respectively, the late star said he was going to “ask [Efron] soon to do that.”

“He was just looking forward to sharing more about his story and his recovery from addiction, and really championing that cause to help more people,” Crosby explained, “so he was so optimistic and happy about everything that he wanted to do.” The following day, Perry was found dead in a hot tub at his Los Angeles home. While Perry’s cause of death has yet to be determined, Crosby said the actor was “doing great” when she spent time with him the day prior.

“He is a very funny person, as most people know him to be,” she said. “He’s goofy, he’s silly. He was cracking jokes the whole time. He was speaking to me about some of the upcoming projects that he wanted to work on. He was very optimistic about the future.” She added, “He was talking about how there’s been a public resurgence of interest in him lately and how he was hoping to utilize that to have a second act in his career. He was happy as a clam. So, that’s the person that I spoke to.”

Perry’s family issued a statement to PEOPLE not long after his passing, saying, “We are heartbroken by the tragic loss of our beloved son and brother. Matthew brought so much joy to the world, both as an actor and a friend.” They added, “You all meant so much to him and we appreciate the tremendous outpouring of love.”