BAFTA responds after facing backlash over excluding Mathew Perry from In Memoriam segment
The actor was recently included in the In Memoriam segment during the 2023 Emmy Awards last month
Fans of late actor Matthew Perry expressed their disappointment after he was not included in the 2024 BAFTA Film Awards In Memoriam segment. Due to this, BAFTA faced backlash on social media.
After Matthew, who died in October last year at the age of 54, did not appear during the tribute -- set to a special arrangement of Cyndi Lauper's Time After Time performed by Ted Lasso's Hannah Waddingham -- social media users were quick to criticise the decision, as per PEOPLE.
Taking to X, people called out BAFTA for the perceived omission, which one dubbed "bad form" alongside a GIF of Matthew's Friends character, Chandler Bing, saying, "You can't make this stuff up." "#Matthewperry why wasn't he mentioned in he baftas?????" a user wrote. Another person wrote, "#BAFTA what happened to Matthew Perry in your memoriam. I know he's famous for TV Friends, but he did films too - shocking mistake ..."
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BAFTA has now responded to the social media backlash. Responding to Matthew's absence from the tribute, a spokesperson for BAFTA tells PEOPLE, "I can confirm Matthew Perry will be remembered in our forthcoming BAFTA Television Awards."
On X, BAFTA echoed this statement, writing, "Matthew Perry will be remembered in this year's TV Awards ceremony," and shared the link to the academy's online tribute to the actor, reported PEOPLE.
Matthew died Saturday, October 28, at his Los Angeles home. His cause of death was later determined to be due to acute effects of ketamine, with other contributing factors.
The actor was recently included in the In Memoriam segment during the 2023 Emmy Awards last month. Matthew's image was shown as Charlie Puth performed his 2015 hit, See You Again, transitioned into the Friends theme song, I'll Be There for You, as per PEOPLE.
