The tragic death of actor Matthew Perry has brought to light the often unseen and morally complex world of celebrity assistants. According to the reports, on October 28, last year, Perry’s personal assistant, Kenny Iwamasa , injected him with ketamine, a request allegedly made by Matthew himself. This tragic incident underscores the extreme and sometimes illegal demands placed on those in the role of personal assistant to the stars.
Kenny Iwamasa, now facing up to 15 years in prison for conspiracy to distribute ketamine, has become a stark example of the ethical and legal quagmires that celebrity assistants can find themselves in. During his interrogation, Iwamasa revealed that Perry’s last words to him were chilling: "Shoot me up with a big one." These words, and the actions that followed, highlight a disturbing aspect of the assistant’s role—where saying "no" can feel impossible.
Merryl Futerman, a former celebrity personal assistant and author of ‘Don’t Make a Scene: Struggles of a Celebrity PA,’ sympathizes with Iwamasa’s situation. In an interview with the New York Post, Futerman reflected, “It’s heartbreaking on many levels, but I’m also aware of the personal assistant being such a grey area in terms of a role. This is in terms of what you can be asked to do and how you can not do things, how it can be hard to say no.
” This sentiment is echoed by a veteran Hollywood boss, who acknowledged the power imbalance between celebrities and their assistan.