Shannen Doherty, ‘Beverly Hills, 90210’ and ‘Charmed’ star, dies at 53

Shannen Doherty, nan Beverly Hills, 90210 prima whose life and profession were roiled by unwellness and tabloid stories, has died astatine 53.

After years pinch bosom cancer, Doherty died Saturday, according to a connection from her publicist, Leslie Sloane.

“The devoted daughter, sister, aunt and friend was surrounded by her loved ones arsenic good arsenic her dog, Bowie. The family asks for their privateness astatine this clip truthful they tin grieve successful peace,” Sloane said Sunday. The news was first reported by People magazine.

Her unwellness was publically revealed successful a suit revenge successful 2015 against her erstwhile business managers, successful which she alleged they mismanaged her money and allowed her wellness security to lapse. She later shared friendly specifications of her curen pursuing a azygous mastectomy. In December 2016, she posted a photograph of her first time of radiation, calling nan curen “frightening” for her.

In February 2020, Doherty revealed that nan crab had returned and she was at shape four. She said she came guardant because her wellness conditions could travel retired successful court. The character had sued security elephantine State Farm aft her California location was damaged successful a occurrence successful 2018.

“I person nary thought really agelong I’m going to beryllium connected nan chemo for. … That’s not thing that I tin predict, it’s not thing my doctors tin predict. And it’s scary, it’s for illustration a large wake-up call,” Doherty said connected a precocious June section of her podcast Let’s Be Clear, adding that a caller alteration successful nan style of her crab cells meant location were caller curen protocols for her to try. “For nan first clip successful a mates months probably, I consciousness hopeful because location are truthful galore much protocols now, whereas earlier I was hopeful — but I was still getting prepared.”

A autochthonal of Memphis, Tennessee, Doherty moved to Los Angeles pinch her family astatine property 7 and, wrong a fewer years, became an actor.

“It was wholly my decision,” she told The Associated Press successful a 1994 interview. “My parents ne'er pushed maine into anything. They support me. It really wouldn’t matter if I was a master shot subordinate — they’d still beryllium arsenic supportive and loving.”

As a kid star, she worked steadily successful specified TV bid arsenic Little House connected nan Prairie, successful which she played Jenny Wilder. She detoured arsenic a teen to nan large surface in Girls Just Want to Have Fun (1985) and Heathers.

In 1990, nan doe-eyed, dark-haired character won her breakout domiciled arsenic Brenda Walsh successful shaper Aaron Spelling’s deed teenage melodrama group successful posh Beverly Hills. She and Canadian character Jason Priestley’s Brandon, Brenda’s copy brother, were fish-out-of-water Midwesterners.

But Doherty’s fame came pinch media scrutiny and accounts of outbursts, drinking and impulsiveness — nan second astir notably aft a very little matrimony to character George Hamilton’s son, Ashley. Doherty’s 2nd marriage, successful 2002, was to Rick Salomon and was annulled wrong a year. In 2011, Doherty joined photographer Kurt Iswarienko. She revenge for divorcement successful April 2023.

She near Beverly Hills, 90210 astatine nan extremity of its 4th play successful 1994 (the show aired until 2000), reportedly removed by Spelling because of conflicts pinch her co-stars and chronic lateness.

But successful her 1994 AP interview, Doherty described her life arsenic peaceful.

“It must be, if you prime up nan Enquirer and find nan only point they tin constitute astir maine is that I installed a salary telephone adjacent to my location and was seen astatine Stroud’s (a discount bed-and-bath chain) buying $1,400 worthy of furniture linens and wouldn’t spell to an costly store,” she said. “It must beryllium calm if they’re pulling that worldly retired of their heads.”

Three years later, successful 1997, Doherty was sentenced to anger-management counselling by a Beverly Hills Municipal Court judge aft she allegedly smashed a brew vessel onto a man’s windshield during a quarrel. After a 2001 drunken driving arrest, she pleaded nary title and was ordered to service 5 days successful a work-release program.

Doherty reunited pinch Spelling erstwhile he formed her successful 1998 arsenic Prue Halliwell successful Charmed. In an AP question and reply that year, nan character expressed regrets astir her past.

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“I did bring a batch of it connected myself,” Doherty said. “I don’t deliberation I tin constituent fingers and say, ‘Oh, YOU’RE to blame.’ And I don’t do that pinch myself, either. Because I was conscionable increasing up.”

Her characteristic was “grotesquely misconstrued” by nan media, Doherty added.

Spelling said astatine nan clip that their narration was ne'er arsenic bad arsenic immoderate made it seem.

“We had a fewer bumps on nan road, but golly, who doesn’t?” said Spelling, who died successful 2006. “Everything Shannen did was blown retired of proportionality by nan rag sheets.”

Doherty starred pinch Holly Marie Combs and Alyssa Milano successful Charmed from 1998-2001, astatine which constituent her characteristic was replaced by 1 played by Rose McGowan. Doherty appeared successful nan 90210 sequel bid 7 years later and competed connected Dancing With nan Stars successful 2010. She besides worked connected nan 3rd Beverly Hills, 90210 reboot, BH90210, a meta send-up that reunited astir of nan original formed and aired for 1 play successful 2019.

She besides appeared successful a tribute section of Riverdale dedicated to that show’s prima — and her precocious Beverly Hills, 90210 on-screen emotion liking — Luke Perry.

Doherty struggled to recapture her Beverly Hills, 90210 prima status, but worked successful big-screen films including Mallrats and Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back and successful specified TV movies arsenic A Burning Passion: The Margaret Mitchell Story, successful which she played nan Gone pinch nan Wind author. A nadir was Blindfold: Acts of Obsession, an seductive thriller other Judd Nelson.

Doherty’s suit against her ex-business managers was settled successful 2016. She was unfastened astir nan toll that crab was taking. She posted photos that showed nan baldness that followed curen and, successful an August 2016 question and reply pinch Entertainment Tonight, shared her fears.

“The chartless is ever nan scariest part,” she said. “Is nan chemo going to work? Is nan radiation going to work?” she said. “Pain is manageable, you cognize surviving without a bosom is manageable, it’s nan interest of your early and really your early is going to impact nan group that you love.”

Doherty advocated for crab consciousness and care, and said to nan AP successful 2021 astir really spending years pinch nan illness affected her life and consciousness of optimism.

“When you get thing for illustration cancer, your tolerance for play is zero. I don’t for illustration group wasting my time. I don’t for illustration negativity,” she said. “It’s overseas because I deliberation if you look back, you’re like, ‘Oh, gosh, it’s truthful overmuch play astir her,’ but I don’t deliberation I was needfully into nan drama. I conscionable deliberation if we took young 18-year-old Shannen, 19-year-old Shannen, and we took her and planted her for illustration correct now, I would beryllium a nerd and cipher would beryllium penning astir me.”

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Lynn Elber, a longtime tv writer, retired from The Associated Press successful 2022. AP journalists Alicia Rancilio and Mallika Sen contributed reporting.

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