The world lost a gifted and talented lady on July 13th. Shannen Doherty. The actress passed away from Stage Four Breast Cancer. She was 53 years old, and according to her publicist, she was a 'devoted daughter, sister, aunt, and friend.'
People was one of the first outlets to report Doherty's death and was given a statement by her publicist, Leslie Sloane, on July 14th.
"It is with a heavy heart that I confirm the passing of actress Shannen Doherty. On Saturday, July 13th, she lost her battle with cancer after many years of fighting the disease. 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."
Doherty first came into the spotlight as Jenny Wilder in NBC's Little House On The Prairie for its last season in 1982 and its farewell movies soon after. In 1990, Doherty's star continued to rise when she acquired the role of Brenda Walsh in the teen drama Beverly Hills, 90120, where her fame skyrocketed. She left the show in season 4, four years after the show's premiere, but reprised her character in the reboot, 90120, from 2008 to 2009. The show ran for five seasons on the CW, ending in 2013.
From 1998 to 2001, Doherty portrayed the witchy role of Prue Halliwell, one of the three magical sisters in the WB supernatural series Charmed. She co-starred with Alyssa Milano and Rose McGowan. She departed the show after three seasons and over 100 episodes.
In 2018, Doherty starred as the single mother of a domesticated abused teenager in the Lifetime TV film No One Would Tell, an updated version of the 1996 ABC movie of the same name.
Doherty even guest-starred on an episode of the CW's Riverdale, where her former co-star, the late Luke Perry, was part of the ensemble and played Fred Andrews, the father of Archie Andrews, played by KJ Apa. Perry passed away from a stroke in 2019, and his death was written into season 4.
How Shannen Doherty remained positive during her breast cancer battle
Doherty first got the diagnosis in 2015. She underwent treatments to fight it, and the disease went into remission in 2017. However, it returned in 2019 and was re-diagnosed as "Stage 4." In June 2023, the cancer matiscized in Doherty's brain, and she revealed on Instagram that doctors extracted a tumor, whom she named "Bob."
One of the things that keep Doherty going was working, and it provided her a reason for living.
"Our life doesn't end the minute we get that diagnosis. We still have some living to do," she said to ABC's Good Morning America in 2020. "You know, I enjoy working, and working gives me just another reason to wake up every morning. It's another reason to fight to stay alive."
People then gave Doherty the cover story in November 2023, and the actress revealed that she still had the fight and desire for life, despite having a horrible disease.
"I'm not done with living. I'm not done with loving. I'm not done with creating. I'm not done with hopefully changing things for the better. I'm just not -- I'm not done."