Entertainment- Matthew Perry said he used to steal pills from open houses when he was addicted to drugs.
- The actor spoke with ABC News' Diane Sawyer about his former addiction and recovery.
Matthew Perry said he used to visit open houses to steal pills from medicine cabinets when he was addicted to prescription drugs.
In an interview with ABC News' Diane Sawyer that aired Friday, Perry opened up about the harrowing details surrounding his former addiction and recovery. The actor's memoir, "Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing," is set for release on November 1.
Perry said he took his first pill after injuring himself on a jet ski while filming the romantic comedy "Fools Rush In" in 1996. He told Sawyer that he eventually took 55 Vicodin a day, a dependency that pushed him to take pills from other people's homes.
"I guess the weirdest thing I did was on Sundays, I would go to open houses and go to the bathrooms and see what pills they had in there and steal them," Perry said. "And I think they thought, 'Well, there's no way that Chandler came in and stole from us.'"
The former "Friends" star also said he used to fake migraines and undergo MRIs — even though he knew "there was nothing wrong" in order to get prescription medication.
The actor also revealed that by 2001, he consumed Xanax, methadone, and a quart of vodka each day. After filming the romantic comedy "Serving Sara" the same year, he had to dub over his original dialogue in the movie because his speech was so slurred.
Perry confirmed to Sawyer that he attended 6,000 Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, went to rehab at least 15 times, and detoxed 65 times during his long recovery.
During the interview, Perry shared that he nearly died after his colon burst from opioid use. The actor revealed he was in a coma for two weeks and hospitalized for five months as a result. In an interview with People earlier this month Perry said he had to use a colostomy bag for nine months after the life-threatening experience.
Perry also told Sawyer that during his first rehabilitation a counselor affirmed that his addiction wasn't his fault.
"That was the first time I realized that all of this insanity wasn't my will, or wasn't what I wanted. It was not my fault," he said.