Matthew Perry’s Mother Says ‘There Was an Inevitability to What Was Going to Happen’

One year after his death, Matthew Perry’s mother Suzanne Morrison is speaking out about her late son. Morrison and some of Perry’s other relatives — including Suzanne’s husband and Perry’s step-father, Dateline NBC correspondent Keith Morrison — sat down with the Today show’s Savannah Guthrie for a conversation about the Friends star.

During a preview of the conversation — shared by PEOPLE — Suzanne confessed that she always believed “there was an inevitability to what was going to happen,” in reference to Perry’s accidental fatal drug overdose in late 2023. She also shared details about a poignant conversation she had with her son after he “went through a period interestingly enough” of showing her “one of his new houses.”

“He came up to me and said, ‘I love you so much and I’m so happy to be with you now,’” Suzanne recalled. “It was almost as though it was a premonition of something. I didn’t think about it at the time but I thought, ‘How long has it been since we’ve had a conversation like that. It’s been years.’”

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“I think there was something… there was an inevitability to what was going to happen next to him, and he felt it very strongly,” she went on to share. “But he said, ‘I’m not frightened anymore.’ And it worried me.” After showing the clip on Today, Guthrie noted that she had “a powerful conversation” about Perry with his family, many of whom have not “spoken about” his death before now.

“There’s so much pain and sorrow, but [they] also have a real sense of purpose about the work that he was doing, helping others get sober,” she said. “It was the purpose of his life, and so there’s some stuff to announce around that too.” The full interview will air Monday, Oct. 28, which marks the one-year anniversary of Perry’s death.

On Saturday, Oct. 28, 2023, first responders discovered Perry’s body after receiving a call to his residence. He was 54 years old at the time of his death. According to law enforcement sources who spoke with TMZ, initial tests determined that Perry did not have fentanyl or meth in his system at the time of his death.

Perry’s death was later revealed to be caused by acute effects of ketamine in an autopsy report obtained by PEOPLE. Contributing factors such as drowning, coronary artery disease and buprenorphine effects (a medication used to treat opioid use disorder) were also listed. Ultimately, the actor’s death was ruled accidental.

Multiple individuals have since been charged in connection to Perry’s death, including two doctors.

If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse or addiction, please call SAMHSA’s National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357). SAMHSA’s National Helpline is free, confidential and available 24/7.