Tori Spelling Reflects on Feeling Devastated When Shannen Doherty Died

Tori Spelling is still grappling with the loss of Shannen Doherty. On the Monday, July 29 episode of her “Misspelling” podcast, Spelling, 51, mentioned needing a break after Doherty’s passing earlier this month.

“I want to thank everyone for your patience. I know we’re all dealing with grief, loss, humanity, love, and fairness in our own time. I’m trying to make sense of things that don’t make sense,” she explained.

“As everyone knows, I lost a good friend. The world lost an important person just about two weeks ago when Shannen passed.”

Spelling has been struggling with complex emotions, adding, “Even though it was expected, the unexpected hit us all hard. It’s humanizing to realize that’s not how life works, and it’s up to us to sort that out.”

On July 14, Us Weekly confirmed Doherty’s death at 53 after a long battle with cancer. Spelling recounted the initial days after hearing about Doherty’s death.

“It was tough for me when I got the news. I was sleeping with two of my children in their bed on that Sunday morning. My phone was on silent but kept buzzing.

I checked the time; it was 7 A.M., and I knew immediately,” she recalled. “I thought, ‘Oh my God, someone’s passed. Someone important has died.’”

Spelling chose not to engage with anyone until she felt ready. “I was mad, not for myself, but for the life that wouldn’t continue and had so much to offer,” she expressed. “Not just for herself but everyone around her.”

Spelling and Doherty co-starred on “Beverly Hills, 90210” from 1990 to 2000, portraying Donna Martin and Brenda Walsh, respectively. The show also featured Jennie Garth, Jason Priestley, Ian Ziering, Brian Austin Green, and the late Luke Perry.

The cast reunited in 2019 for “BH90210,” a six-episode series filmed after Perry’s death at 52. While discussing her friendship with Doherty, Spelling acknowledged their ups and downs.

“How do I summarize someone I’ve known for 36 years? It’s over half my life. Someone I grew up with, who was my best friend.

Someone I had misunderstandings with, lost contact with, and lost years over things we later realized were silly,” Spelling shared. “We acknowledged lost time—years we could have been together.”

She continued: “But in the end, we got to say, ‘None of that matters.’ What matters is the core friendship we had, and we got back to that.”

In Monday’s podcast episode, Spelling paid tribute to Doherty.

“The big takeaway in the last two weeks is I’ve been reflecting on the enormous impact Shannen had. Not just on one generation, but on generations to come,” she concluded.

“Her legacy will continue. She will live on in her work, the people who loved her, and the causes she stood for.”