BAFTA Responds to Backlash for Omitting Matthew Perry From In Memoriam Video

Matthew Perry poses at a photocall for 'The End of Longing', a new play which he wrote and stars in at The Playhouse Theatre, on Feb. 8, 2016, in London, England.

BAFTA has issued a response to the backlash it faced immediately on social media for excluding Matthew Perry from its In Memoriam segment during the 2024 BAFTA Film Awards on Sun., Feb. 18.

The four-minute segment featured Ted Lasso star Hannah Waddingham, 49, singing a beautiful rendition of Cyndi Lauper’s “Time After Time.” As she sang, the BAFTAs showed photos, and occasional video clips, of people within the film industry who died in the last year.

The segment recognized several actors, including Glynis Johns, Chaim Topol, Carl Weathers and Michael Gambon. But as fans quickly noted on social media, Perry’s photo was not included.

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“No mention of Matthew Perry in the #BAFTAs memorial?! Bad form,” one person wrote on X.

“Where was Matthew Perry’s tribute in that memorial?” another person asked, as others pointed out that Perry appeared in films in addition to his starring role as Chandler Bing on the beloved NBC sitcom Friends.

“The #BAFTAs not including Matthew Perry in their ‘In Memoriam’ section is my villain origin story,” one X user said.

The BAFTAs responded to one X user who asked about the Perry omission, writing on X, “Matthew Perry will be remembered in this year’s TV Awards ceremony.”

The post also provided a link to a Perry tribute BAFTA has on its website. The tribute recognizes Perry’s work as a TV and film actor. It also acknowledges Perry’s more expansive involvement in the short-running sitcoms Mr. Sunshine and The Odd Couple, for which he served as a creator, writer, executive producer and star.

Perry died in October 2023 at age 54. He was at his home in Los Angeles at the time of his passing.

While it was initially reported that Perry died of an apparent drowning, a toxicology report released several weeks later by the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office provided more information. In that report, Perry’s cause of death was identified as “acute effects of ketamine,” an anesthetic that can be used to treat depression, with drowning listed as a secondary cause of death.

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