"Friends" actor James Michael Tyler died 1:00
(CNN) -
Jennifer Aniston led tributes to fellow "Friends" James Michael Tyler after his death, saying the show "wouldn't have been the same" without him.
Tyler, best known for playing Gunther, the Central Perk coffee shop manager and admirer of Rachel Green, on the 10-season hit '90s sitcom, died peacefully at his home in Los Angeles on Sunday, his manager Toni said. Benson.
Tyler died after a battle with prostate cancer, which was first diagnosed in 2018, Benson said.
The actor was 59 years old.
After news of her death broke, Aniston, who played Rachel, paid tribute to her with an Instagram post acknowledging her contribution to the show's success.
James Michael Tyler, the actor who played Gunther on "Friends", has died.
"'Friends' wouldn't have been the same without you," he wrote.
"Thank you for the laughter you brought to the show and to all of our lives. We will miss you so much #JamesMichaelTyler."
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Her post included a clip from the 2004 series finale when Gunther finally plucked up the courage to tell Rachel that he loved her as she prepared to leave New York for a new life in Paris.
Rachel gently disappointed him saying that she would always think of him whenever she saw a man with "hair brighter than the sun", referencing Gunther's iconic bleached blonde look.
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Courteney Cox, who played Monica Geller on the show, remembered Tyler as a magnanimous person.
"The size of the gratitude you brought and showed every day on set is the size of the gratitude I have for meeting you. Rest in peace, James," Cox wrote along with a photo of him on his Instagram page.
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The actor who played Joey Tribbiani, Matt Leblanc, also shared a heartfelt message, saying, "We laugh a lot, buddy. We'll miss you. RIP, buddy."
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Lisa Kudrow, best known for playing quirky masseuse Phoebe Buffay on "Friends," thanked Tyler "for being there for all of us."
"James Michael Tyler, we will miss you," she wrote alongside a photo of him on Instagram.
David Schwimmer, who played paleontologist Ross Geller, thanked Tyler for "playing such a wonderful and unforgettable role" and "for being a big-hearted, off-screen gentleman."
"We will miss you, friend," he added in a tribute posted on Instagram.
Chandler Bing actor Matthew Perry posted on Twitter: "We lost a good friend to James Michael Tyler yesterday. Gunther, we will miss you."
"Friends" co-creators Marta Kauffman and David Crane told CNN in a statement that Tyler was a "genuinely kind and sweet man."
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Tyler's disease
Tyler publicly shared the news of his diagnosis during an appearance on NBC's Today Show in June.
He said he had lost the ability to walk after the disease began to "mutate," leading to tumors in his spine.
He made a brief virtual appearance at the HBO Max "Friends" reunion earlier this year.
"Honestly, it was the 10 most memorable years of my life," the actor said during the television special.
"I couldn't have imagined a better experience. All of these guys were fantastic. It was a pleasure working with them. It felt very, very special."
Prostate cancer is one of the most common cancers and the second leading cause of cancer death among men in the United States.
While some types of prostate cancer grow slowly and may need minimal or even no treatment, others are aggressive and can spread quickly, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Friends
