Who is Briana Brancato? All about Matthew Perry's former personal assistant as she shares heartbreaking tribute 

American-Canadian actor-comedian Matthew Perry passed away in his Pacific Palisades home in Los Angeles, California, on October 28, at the age of 54. Best remembered for playing the role of Chandler Bing on the NBC sitcom Friends between 1994 and 2004, Matthew Perry succumbed to apparent drowning.

On Saturday evening, he was found unresponsive in his hot tub by his assistant. When the Los Angeles Police Department was called to the scene, they pronounced him dead.

While it remains unknown which of his assistants discovered him deceased, the New York Post revealed that Briana Brancato was his longtime personal assistant and dear friend, who recently stopped working in the role to pursue a career as a personal trainer.

Following Perry’s death, Brancato even shared a long and heartfelt tribute on her Instagram.

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Briana Brancato is a 34-year-old former personal assistant of the late Matthew Perry

34-year-old Briana Brancato was Matthew Perry’s longtime personal assistant for seven years (2015-2023), who only recently quit the job to fulfill her lifelong dream of becoming a personal trainer. As per her IMDb page, she was also a stuntwoman who appeared in films such as Not Done (2020).

According to Perry’s 2022 memoir Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing, when he spent five months in a hospital and nearly died from a ruptured colon from opioid use, it was Briana Brancato who saved his life and was one of his closest friends in the world.

On Monday, Briana shared a heartfelt tribute to her longtime boss on Instagram. She began the post saying:

“I’ve expressed my deepest gratitude to him on numerous occasions, not only for guiding me into a career I cherish but also for allowing me to take care of him for 7 years.”

Brancato also thanked Perry for giving her “countless experiences” and sharing his “worldly adventures” with her, and for taking her worldwide and including her in his “remarkable journey.”

She further continued by saying that while her heart was heavy with grief, she knew that the only way to honor his legacy was by celebrating their memories together.

“I hope that up there, in the great beyond, Mattman is sending us signs. We truly need them. You’ll forever be in my heart. [broken heart emoji, dove emoji] I love you Matty.”

In her post, Briana shared a series of pictures, one showing her and Matthew Perry seated side by side on a couch, and another showing them aimlessly lying on the bed and sharing a laugh. There was also a short clip of Briana with another woman trying to take an in-flight selfie, only to be photobombed by Perry from behind.

The post also had an image of Perry with one of his dogs and another one in which the duo shared a car ride. Alongside her lengthy post, right after Perry’s death news became viral, Brancato took to her Instagram Story to share a picture of them together and the text “Broken hearted. Sweet dreams, Matty,” written on it.

As per the New York Post, Briana also commented on Matthew Perry’s longtime personal trainer, friend, and breathwork coach John Paul Crimi’s tribute post and wrote how it was through Perry that she met Crimi and found her true ambition.

Earlier, before the May 2021 Friends: Reunion, Brancato posted a picture with her then-boss and asked her followers to check out Matthew Perry’s newly launched limited-edition Friends merchandise collection.