Matthew Perry had developed a bizarre fixation with Batman and had referred to himself as ‘Mattman’ in the run-up to his tragic death, his final Instagram posts reveal.

Perry’s fans believe he was sending out his own ‘bat signal’ in the days before his passing at the age of 54 after decades of substance abuse problems. The Friends star was found unresponsive in a hot tub at his Pacific Palisades home on Saturday.

With the world still reeling in the wake of Perry’s death, the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office revealed that his cause of death is ‘deferred’ with the investigation considered ‘ongoing’ by authorities.

Previously, Perry admitted that he saw himself as Batman – a young, damaged individual who channeled the loss of his parents into being a crime-fighting vigilante with a strong sense of justice to help other people.

He called the superhero a ‘rich loner,’ which was a description he related to after getting into the movies directed by Christopher Nolan directed in the mid 2000s.

The obsession saw all seven of his last social media posts reference Batman -including one video showing large flat screens broadcasting the character’s logo, and bat signal silhouette at the bottom of his swimming pool.

The tortured character is seemingly at-odds with the upbeat persona that Perry sought to portray publicly in his final days.

Matthew Perry died on Saturday at the age of 54 (he is pictured earlier this week, the last time he was seen in public) Perry admitted that he saw himself as Batman – a young, damaged character who channeled the tragic loss of his parents into being a crime-fighting vigilante with a strong sense of justice to help other people

In the days before his death, Perry posted seven times with illusions to Batman. Many fans, at the time, thought that it was a cry for help

Days ago: On October 18, Matthew shared another nighttime shot taken outside with the Batman emblem lit up in red lights on his pool

The Batman logo at the bottom of his pool can be seen here in an aerial daylight shot

Actor Matthew Perry’s backyard taped off following his passing

 Despite what mental troubles Batman went through, the comic book character turned his pain into a superpower to help others – which is what Perry often said he tried to do as he spoke publicly about his battle with addiction. 

Perry regularly signed his posts with ‘I’m Mattman’ – his Batman-inspired nickname.

Perry wrote the caption: ‘No need to worry everybody,’ Perry wrote, ‘I’ve got the streets tonight.’

A friend of Perry’s told People Magazine that the actor was ‘incredibly happy’ in the days leading up to his death.

In reference to the social media posts, the friend said Perry was ‘having fun.’

In another post, he showed the bat signal lit up in red lights, with the message: ‘Sleep well everybody. I’ve got the city tonight—Mattman.’ It was followed by a picture of a sign reading: ‘BATMAN PLAYS PICKLEBALL.’

Pickleball was the sport Perry was believed to be playing just hours before his death.

He also posted a video of three red berries, writing: ‘This is what I’ve had to eat today. I’m Mattman’ as well as a carved pumpkin with a Batman logo hole.

His penultimate post was of the half-moon in the sky, with the caption: ‘Do you understand what I’m trying to tell you?—I’m Mattman.’

And in his final public post, he called himself Mattman again, as he posed in a pool at night with the half-moon behind him, with the caption: ‘Oh, so warm water swirling around makes you feel good? I’m Mattman.’

When he was posting his out-of-the-ordinary on Instagram last week, many fans realized that it may have meant something was wrong.

Perry shows off his Batman clothes – including baseball hats and sweat pants adorned with the infamous logos. The actor also had a Batman watch which he bought while vacationing in Hong Kong

The actor’s backyard, with the Batman logo seen illuminated in the pool, on Saturday night after he was found dead

Fixation: One of the star’s final posts showed The Batman movie being shown on multiple screens

Eerie: His last social media picture, shared five days before he passed away, showed him in an outdoor jacuzzi. Perry allegedly died after drowning in his jacuzzi at home

The last chapter – and line – of Matthew Perry’s memoir was about Batman

Matthew Perry’s remains loaded into coroner’s van hours after death

The dispatches from emergency responders made references to ‘drowning,’ the audio first published by TMZ shows. ‘Agent 23. Rescue 23. EMS 9 on the radio. In response to the drowning,’ a section of the call reveals.

No drugs were found at the scene with authorities ruling out foul play. It has since emerged that anti-anxiety drugs and painkillers were found inside the house with friend saying that star seemed ‘fatigued’ in his last days.

The frequent references to the Batman logo made many believe it was actually Perry’s own bat signal, which is the distress signal used in fictional Gotham City to summon Batman to help.

Now, many fans suggested that Perry’s posts may have been his own cry for help.

Six days ago, one person wrote underneath a video he posted of the moon: ‘Are you okay, should we send for help?’

And another, from nearly a week ago, said: ‘Are you trying to give us a hint or something?’

While a third fan, five days ago, agreed: ‘He is trying to tell us something.’

And underneath another post of Perry’s from this week, where he carved the batman symbol into a pumpkin, one commenter said: ‘So Matt, you do know there are a few of us who are a little concerned about you right now?

‘I am hoping you’re just having a little silly fun or you’re hinting at a new project. Your fans adore you and want you to be happy and healthy – please take care of yourself? Thanks.’

Another person, six days ago, wrote: ‘Anyone else read the book and see the risky connection?’ alluding to his obsession with Batman.

Perry’s love for Batman was well-documented – and even in his memoir ‘Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing’, he often wrote that he actually was Batman.

And his final chapter was named after the eponymous superhero.

The final lines of Perry’s memoir read: ‘Someday you, too, might be called upon to do something important, so be ready for it.

‘And when whatever happens, just think, What would Batman do? and do that.’

In his book, he remembered imagining himself as Batman and his father as Superman.

He also joked about referring to an assistant as ‘Alfred’ and the person addressing him as ‘Mr Wayne.’

In an interview with GQ last year, Perry made multiple references to being Batman – and said: ‘I am Batman. Well, he’s a rich loner.

Matthew Perry’s love for Batman could be seen in his home, with multiple memorabilia visible here

Perry’s LA penthouse, which was covered in Batman-themed items

‘We both drive black, cool cars. I don’t solve crime, but I’ve saved people’s lives.’

He said: ‘I relate to Batman very much,’ and told the outlet that his love for the character started after he watched the Christopher Nolan movies as an adult in 2005.

Perry also showed off his Batman clothes too – including baseball hats and sweat pants adorned with the infamous logos. The actor also had a Batman watch which he bought while vacationing in Hong Kong.

And Perry also revealed that the main reason he bought one of his apartments in LA was because it resembled Christian Bale’s apartment in ‘The Dark Knight.’

It was a $35million 9,300-square-foot condo on the 40th floor of The Century, an uber-upscale luxury high-rise apartment building that is adjacent to ritzy Beverly Hills.

And listing photos of the penthouse actually show Perry’s own stylistic Batman accents throughout the home, including statues and office chairs.

He also had a bat cave – like a man cave, but just for his memorabilia – in his home.

Perry had reportedly played a two-hour game of Pickleball on Saturday, before sending his assistant out on an errand. When the person returned, Perry was said to have been found unresponsive in his hot tub.

Sources told DailyMail.com that Matthew Perry was lonely and longing for a wife and a family when he died, after a string of failed relationships left him feeling ‘sad and depressed.’

The Friends star, 54, was found dead on Saturday at his home in Los Angeles – and close sources say that Perry even longed for stepchildren, thanks to his great relationship with his own stepdad Keith Morrison.

Perry as Chandler in a famous episode where he married Monica, with Rachel and Phoebe as bridesmaids

The actor, who shot to fame as the sarcastic Chandler Bing in the seminal 90s sitcom, was found dead at his house in Los Angeles on Saturday after emergency crews were called at around 4pm local time.

‘Matthew always dreamed of having the perfect family,’ a source close to the star told DailyMail.com. ‘He wanted a wife, and at least a couple of kids. And he said he wouldn’t even mind marrying a woman who already had kids.’

No one meant more to Perry in this world than his stepfather Keith Morrison the host of Dateline, who married his mother in 1981, the source said.

Perry won a worldwide fanbase for his role as Chandler in Friends, earning him an Emmy nomination in 2002 – but behind the glitz and glamour, he secretly battled substance abuse for decades.

Born on August 19, 1969 in Massachusetts, Perry grew up in Ottawa and was raised by his mother, Suzanne Morrison, a Canadian writer and former press aide for Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau.

Morrison and Perry’s father were married from 1968 to 1970 and she later married Canadian broadcast journalist Keith Morrison, who has been on Dateline for decades, in 1981.

In Canada, Perry was a top-rated tennis player but at 15 moved to Los Angeles to be closer to his father, John Bennett Perry, an actor known for several shows, including Falcon Crest, and later on Old Spice commercials.

In the 1980s and ’90s, Perry landed spots on the decades’ most popular TV shows like Charles in Charge, Who’s The Boss?, Growing Pains and Beverly Hills, 90210.

He also had a role in A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon, a movie released in 1988 that starred River Phoenix.

Aerial images show Perry’s pool and hot tub where he was found dead Saturday

The film was ‘one of the greatest experiences I’ve ever had, because I was 16 years old and in Chicago all by myself, no parents around,’ Perry told BuzzFeed. ‘I knew that I wanted to act.’

In his memoir Perry spoke briefly about how he would like to be remembered after his death.

‘When I die, I know people will talk about Friends, Friends, Friends,’ he wrote.

‘And I’m glad of that, happy I’ve done some solid work as an actor, as well as given people multiple chances to make fun of my struggles on the world wide web.

‘But when I die, as far as my so-called accomplishments go, it would be nice if Friends were listed far behind the things I did to try to help other people.

‘I know it won’t happen but it would be nice.’

On Sunday, fans of Perry left bunches of flowers outside the iconic Friends ‘apartment’ in New York City – while well-wishers place tributes by his LA home.

Tearful mourners left bouquets of colorful flowers on the wet sidewalk outside the Friends apartment facade in West Village, Manhattan.

Despite never filming at the location, the Bedford Street building served as the exterior shot in the TV show Friends and soon became an iconic tourist hotspot.

Many people stood out in the pouring rain to lay flowers and leave notes at the makeshift memorial for the much-loved actor. One fan, wearing a Friends tote bag, started crying at the somber tribute.

Meanwhile in Los Angeles, fans left bouquets of sunflowers and other tributes in front of the gates to Perry’s home, where he was found dead over the weekend.

Among the items was a miniature batman doll and handwritten cards from fans.