LOS ANGELES — Shannen Doherty, the “Beverly Hills, 90210” star whose life and career were roiled by illness and tabloid stories, has died at 53.
After years with breast cancer, Doherty passed away at the age of 53 on Saturday, according to a statement from her publicist, Leslie Sloane.
“The devoted daughter, sister, aunt and friend was surrounded by her loved ones as well as her dog, Bowie. The family asks for their privacy at this time so they can grieve in peace,” Sloane said Sunday. The news was first reported by People magazine.
Her battle with cancer was publicly revealed through a lawsuit filed in 2015 against her former business managers, where she claimed mismanagement of her finances and lapse of health insurance. She later shared personal insights into her treatment following a mastectomy. In December 2016, she shared a photo of her first day of radiation and expressed her fear of the treatment.
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In February 2020, Doherty announced that her cancer had returned and progressed to stage four. She decided to speak out about her health conditions as they could come up in court. She sued insurance company State Farm following a fire incident at her California home in 2018.
“I have no idea how long I’m going to be on the chemo for. … That’s not something that I can predict, it’s not something my doctors can predict. And it’s scary, it’s like a big wake-up call,” Doherty shared on an episode of her podcast “Let’s Be Clear,” revealing a recent change in her cancer cells and new treatment options. “For the first time in a couple months probably, I feel hopeful because there are so many more protocols now, whereas before I was hopeful — but I was still getting prepared.”
Born in Memphis, Tennessee, Doherty relocated to Los Angeles with her family at the age of 7 and soon found her passion for acting.
“It was completely my decision,” she mentioned in a 1994 interview with The Associated Press. “My parents never pushed me into anything. They support me. It really wouldn’t matter if I was a professional soccer player — they’d still be as supportive and loving as ever.”
Starting as a child star, she appeared in various TV series such as “Little House on the Prairie,” where she portrayed Jenny Wilder. She ventured into the big screen as a teenager in films like “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” (1985) and “Heathers.”
In 1990, Doherty rose to fame with her role as Brenda Walsh in the popular teenage drama “Beverly Hills, 90210” produced by Aaron Spelling. She played the character alongside Jason Priestley’s Brandon as Midwesterners trying to fit in with the posh Beverly Hills crowd.
However, Doherty’s fame came with intense media scrutiny, reports of outbursts, alcohol consumption, and impulsive decisions — particularly highlighted after a short-lived marriage to actor George Hamilton’s son, Ashley. Her second marriage to Rick Salomon in 2002 was annulled within a year. In 2011, she married photographer Kurt Iswarienko, and filed for divorce in April 2023.
