Jason Priestley says Beverly Hills 90210 pal Shannen Doherty’s death ‘hit me hard’

Jason Priestley has spoken candidly about his grief following the death of his TV sister Shannen Doherty.

The Beverly Hills 90210 actress, who played Priestley’s twin sister Brenda Walsh in hit 90s drama, died of cancer in July at age 53.

The actor, who played her twin brother Brandon Walsh, said he has started to reflect on his own life.

“It made me think about my own mortality,” he told the Sunday Mirror.

“I woke up on my 50th birthday and realized I had already lived most of my life,” he said.

“Her passing hit me hard. We had an incredible experience working together,” he said of his time on 90210.

Jason Priestley, 54, has opened up about his grief following the death of his on-screen sister Shannen Doherty. The Beverly Hills 90210 actress, who played twins Brenda and Brandon Walsh on the hit ’90s drama alongside Priestley, died of cancer in July at the age of 53.

It was the day that Shannen, Luke [Perry] and I got shot for the cover of Rolling Stone [in 1992] “That I started to understand the impact the show was having,” he told the publication.

Doherty was the second original 90210 cast member to die. Perry died in 2019 at age 52 after suffering a stroke.

The Wild Cards actor praised Doherty for being “very open” about her breast cancer diagnosis in 2015.

The Charmed star announced in June 2023 that the disease had spread to her brain and that her diagnosis was terminal.

“She was very open about her cancer and tried to use her platform to help other people.”

“I have always admired her tenacity and resilience. Even though I knew she was ill, her passing was still a great surprise and saddening to all of us,” he said.

“She fought it for so long and it seemed like she could do it… until unfortunately she couldn’t anymore.”

In an appearance on Doherty’s Let’s Be Clear podcast in January, Priestley and his former co-star discussed some of the reasons why she earned a reputation as a problem child on the set of 90210.

Priestley and Doherty, along with the rest of their castmates, rose to fame after Beverly Hills 90210 premiered in 1990. The drama ran for 10 seasons, but Doherty’s character was written out of the series at the end of season four.

Priestley praised Doherty for being “very open” about her breast cancer diagnosis in 2015. The Charmed star revealed in June 2023 that the disease had spread to her brain and that her diagnosis was terminal (pictured in Los Angeles in August 2019)

Her character was written out of the series at the end of season four, when it was revealed that Brenda was going to study acting in England.

Behind the scenes, the young actress went through many personal problems, which she kept to herself.

‘I was in a really horrible marriage [to actor Ashley Hamilton, 49]“And there were things that happened in that marriage that made it really difficult for me to get to work on time,” she revealed, while acknowledging that her tardiness had an impact on the cast and crew, who ended up working even longer hours than expected.

The actor said he was grateful that he and Doherty were able to put the pain of the past behind them. “I feel very fortunate that I got to spend a fair amount of time with her over the years. I was okay with her being gone because there was nothing left between us that was unsaid.” (Pictured in Orlando, FL in February)

“And I know that became a very big problem for the rest of you, and rightly so.”

The actor said he was grateful that he and Doherty were able to put the pain of the past behind them.

“Shannen was a force to be reckoned with. And I feel very privileged to have had the opportunity to spend a fair amount of time with her over the last few years.”

“I was fine with her being gone because there was nothing left between us that went unmentioned.”