Saturday Night Live honors Matthew Perry with title card

Mere matters after the news of his passing first broke, Saturday Night Live paid homage to a former host in Matthew Perry.

At the tail end of the episode featuring Nate Bargatze as host, a title card with Perry aired in commemoration. This was a last-minute addition to the show, but it was right for Lorne Michaels and the producers to do this. While Matthew was certainly best known for a different NBC series in Friends, he did host an episode all the way back in 1997. It is actually pretty rare for TV stars to take on this role, given the scheduling commitments that they have with everything else on their plate. This was right in the middle of Friends’ run, and that probably made doing both shows all the more challenging.

For those unaware, Saturday Night Live has a long history of honoring everyone from former hosts to cast and crew members with title cards and/or tributes during new episodes. Through its almost 50-year history the NBC sketch show has built a real community of people who come together and entertain in this unique environment. Even if you have not been a part of the show for a long time, you are still not forgotten.

There is no question that Matthew was a gifted actor and while he often specialized in comedy, he did show off his dramatic chops from time to time. His most recent comedy success came from a reboot of The Odd Couple alongside Thomas Lennon; he also appeared in a short-lived series titled Go On that is absolutely worth your time, if you ever have a chance to stumble upon it. It was very much about confronting your grief and some of the struggles that you’ve faced in life, and these are things that Perry himself was open and honest about over the past several years, including a memoir that was published back in 2022.

Our thoughts and condolences go out to Perry’s family and loved ones during this difficult time. We hope that this tribute serves as a further reminder of his work and his character.