Matthew Perry's The West Wing co-star Bradley Whitford pens powerful tribute as ... trends now

Matthew Perry was remembered by his old The West Wing co-star Bradley Whitford in a heartbreaking Instagram post this Tuesday.

The late Friends star was found dead in the hot tub outside of his Pacific Palisades home in Los Angeles Saturday at the age of just 54.

Throughout his life, Perry was open about his struggles with drugs and alcohol, but initial toxicology reports revealed he had no meth or fentanyl in his system when he died, and the authorities did not unearth illegal drugs at his home.

Whitford, who acted with Perry on the hit Aaron Sorkin drama The West Wing as well as a co-starring role on sitcom Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip, paid tribute to his old friend's 'heroic' struggle against addiction.

'Without substances, Matt had a huge, open heart and a pyrotechnical, joyous brain,' wrote Whitford. 'I think the most beautiful parts of Matt made him the most vulnerable to the monster that he would have to fight for the rest of his life.'

Perry had a recurring role as Joe Quincy on The West Wing starring in three episodes in 2003 while Whitford starred on every episode of the series as Josh Lyman from 1999 to 2006.

His message was attached to an old video of him and Perry goofing around during a TV interview to promote Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip.

The sitcom debuted in 2006, two years after Friends aired its finale, and the television interviewer asked Perry whether he found it 'difficult to shake Chandler.'

'You shook him this morning,' Whitford joked, and Perry got in on the gag, vamping: 'If you do that one more time, I'll start shaking him right now.

'Matthew Perry made me laugh. Hard,' Whitford wrote in his new Instagram message this Wednesday in memory of his co-star.

'You have not lived until you have witnessed one of his in-between-the-takes confidential riffs on the absurdity of show business and the idiocy of male confidence, wrapped up perfectly with the sudden realization that we were both grown men who wear makeup for a living.'

Whitford reflected: 'Without substances, Matt had a huge, open heart and a pyrotechnical, joyous brain. I think the most beautiful parts of Matt made him the most vulnerable to the monster that he would have to fight for the rest of his life.'

In a tip of the hat to Perry's struggles to overcome his addiction, he added: 'His battle was heroic. They don’t have award shows for that. They should.'

Said he: 'Matt was full of contradictions. He was hilariously self deprecating and insecure and wildly self confident. He was a fountain of light with a huge capacity for darkness. He was profoundly blessed and terribly cursed.'

Perry's mother Suzanne and John are still alive, and Whitford warmly shared: I want his parents to know that Matt was kind. Not just to his costar. To everyone.'

He went on: 'To honor Matt, I hope we can continue the work that mattered most to him: to open our hearts to so many who share his vulnerabilities, to encourage them to get the help they need, and to give them the love and the support they deserve.'

In conclusion, he wrote: 'I’m so grateful that I had the opportunity to work with Matt, to spend some precious time with him, and most of all, to be his friend.'

The homage came as initial toxicology reports revealed here was no meth or fentanyl in Perry's system when he drowned on Saturday.

According o a TMZ report, more in-depth testing is underway and would show if the beloved actor had any prescription medication in his system. 

When investigators responded to Perry's home, they did not find any

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