Tori Spelling Made 1st Husband Cry Leaving Him — 9 Years Later, She Comes to Him as She Tries to Save 2nd Marriage

• Tori Spelling, famous for "Beverly Hills, 90210," was first married to Charlie Shahnaian.
• Her life took a turn when she met and fell deeply in love with Dean McDermott, whom she left her husband for.
• Years later, the actress had relationship issues and returned to her first husband only to find him happily married.

Tori Spelling was born to already famous parents, author Candy Spelling and her producer husband, Aaron Spelling, in 1973. As a young child, Spelling was greatly influenced by her father's career and showed a talent for acting early on. She featured in many of her dad's shows as a child, which helped her start a career in showbiz.

Spelling continued to star in numerous roles for her father, but her true big break only came in 1990 when she was chosen to star as Donna Martin in the popular teen soap "Beverly Hills, 90210." The show ran until 2000, and Spelling reprised her role in the 2008 revival. After the soap, she also starred in two reality TV shows.

Spelling quickly made a name for herself in Hollywood, starring in numerous projects. In 2002, the actress was chosen for the play "Maybe Baby, It's You," which would set her life on a new track. While starring in the production, she met Charlie Shahnaian, and the two slowly got to know each other over the next two years.

Throughout the evening, the two joked and flirted, but Spelling was sure they would draw the line there.

Between 2002 and 2004, Spelling and Shahnaian grew closer, and they finally tied the knot on July 3 in an impressive wedding ceremony. The marriage seemed happy at first, but over time, things took a sad turn. Although Spelling and Shahnaian had a committed relationship, the actress confessed that she felt their marriage was lacking something.

Nonetheless, they stayed together for more than a year, although things started to unravel when Spelling first laid eyes on Dean McDermott. Spelling and McDermott's paths first crossed when they starred together in a film, and she still remembers the moment they met in director Chris Leitch's office.

The actress recalled how Leitch introduced them to each other, first calling Spelling in to discuss some points of the films. Leitch had McDermott file in a few minutes later. Spelling recalled how she fell head-over-heels the minute McDermott walked into the room, and she candidly revealed:

"My first thought was, 'Oh my God, he's so hot.' My second thought was, 'I must look terrible.' I hadn't put on makeup or done my hair. Dean came across the room. We shook hands. I've been instantly attracted to men before, but this was different."

Although the notion of love at first sight seemed like a childish fantasy to her at that time in her life, she couldn't help but feel instantly enamored by this tall, handsome man who confidently offered her his hand. She confessed, "I fell so hard."

Since they would be starring in a film together, McDermott and Spelling went out for dinner to get to know one another. Spelling felt instantly at ease. She could never eat in front of men for fear of getting something stuck in her teeth or talking with her mouth full. However, with McDermott, she ate her entire meal. In fact, she recalled McDermott being impressed at her healthy appetite and her blatant confession about loving food.

She also recalled that they got along marvelously over dinner, cracking jokes and generally enjoying each other's company. But Spelling soon noticed that McDermott was wearing a wedding ring and thought of her own marriage.

Throughout the evening, the two joked and flirted, but Spelling was sure they would draw the line there. After all, they were both in committed relationships, and McDermott was not shy about showing off his children.

Even so, to Spelling's surprise, they ended up at a bar together. One thing led to the next, and Spelling woke up next to him the following morning.

Getting Friendly and Losing Interest

Spelling confessed that she didn't feel guilty about sleeping with McDermott at all, which told her something wasn't right in her marriage to Shahnaian. When she met McDermott, Spelling and Shahnaian had only been married for a little more than a year, while McDermott had been with his wife, Mary Jo Eustace, for over a decade.

Spelling and McDermott eloped to Fiji in 2005, and two years later, they welcomed their first son, Liam McDermott.

Shahnaian confessed that he and his first wife were from entirely different walks of life. Spelling had grown up as something akin to Hollywood royalty while he was from Peabody, Massachusetts, where he lived a regular life without the humdrum of celebrity shaping him.

Shahnaian also recalled that he never really got along with Spelling's famous parents. The actor/writer revealed, "[Spelling's dad] liked to talk about his glory days a little too much, [Spelling's mom] liked to cast an icy glare and pretend to forget how to pronounce my name."

Nonetheless, he loved their daughter, and for a year, it seemed that they would be living a happily married life together. But Spelling was becoming increasingly irate with her husband, especially after she fell in love with McDermott. Unhappiness was brewing, and one night, attending a party with his bride, Shahnaian's married life crumbled.

The writer recalled how Spelling was on his arm at one moment, and they were having a huge fight the next. Suddenly, Spelling told him she needed "time and space" and stormed away, leaving Shahnaian utterly perplexed. He had no idea why the fight had become so tumultuous, but soon, Spelling contacted him again.

His wife sent him an e-mail saying she wanted to try couples therapy, and Shahnaian agreed. When he showed up at the therapist's office, however, Spelling revealed how unhappy she had been in their 15-month-long relationship. She claimed she never wanted kids with him and only married him because he offered her stability.

While Shahnaian reeled from the information, Spelling continued, noting she had only shown him "10 percent of her true personality." In the same breath, Spelling came clean about cheating on her husband with McDermott and added, "I hate it when you sing in the car." That became the end of the road for them.

After the breakup in the therapist's office, Spelling and Shahnaian never saw each other again. Spelling moved in with McDermott soon after she broke the news to Shahnaian, while McDermott also broke up with his wife.

While Spelling moved on with her life, Shahnaian still didn't fully understand what had gone wrong between them. He thought they were building a happy life together. After they divorced and the news went public, Spelling opened up about her first marriage in an article that left Shahnaian in tears. He recalled:

"The article read like scenes ripped from one of her Movies of the Week – the lovelorn wife trapped in an unhappy marriage, forced to run into the waiting arms of her also-married lover in order to find true happiness. She was never in love with me."

Spelling and McDermott eloped to Fiji in 2005, and two years later, they welcomed their first son, Liam McDermott. Shortly after the birth of their son, they launched the reality TV show "Tori and Dean: Inn Love" together, which ran for two seasons.

They later welcomed a second baby together. Stella McDermott was born in 2008, and her sister Hattie McDermott followed in 2011. Then they had a second son, Finn McDermott, in 2013. Shortly after they welcomed their second baby boy, rumors started to circulate that McDermott was unfaithful to Spelling, and the two decided to talk it out on TV.

In a bid to deal with the pain of McDermott's unfaithfulness to her, Spelling agreed and set up a meeting with Shahnaian.

Spelling chronicled her life and her marriage on her TV show "True Tori," giving fans a glimpse into her private affairs. On the show, she and McDermott worked through their marital issues after the actor slept with another woman while promoting the reality TV cooking show, "Chopped Canada."

As Spelling and McDermott's relationship deteriorated on "True Tori," she filmed one episode where she reminisced on her life with Shahnaian. In the episode, the reality TV star could be seen in the lead-up to her reunion with her first husband, and by the end, she was sobbing.

Putting Things Back Together

While filming "True Tori," Spelling often went to therapy to help her work through her problems with McDermott while also engaging with her past. In one of the episodes, Spelling's therapist recommended the actress should meet up with her first husband to confront any lingering guilt and gain closure.

In a bid to deal with the pain of McDermott's unfaithfulness to her, Spelling agreed and set up a meeting with Shahnaian. While she prepared to meet with Shahnaian for the first time since they went their separate ways in 2005, Spelling also juggled going to therapy with her husband and battling migraines.

Following his divorce from Spelling, [Shahnaian] found new love after braving the dating scene once more.

Spelling's therapist commented that the migraines were a symptom of stress and popped up whenever Spelling dealt with something that put a strain on her emotional state. In the few days leading up to Spelling's meeting with Shahnaian, these migraines became more common.

Eventually, Spelling canceled her first meeting with her ex-husband due to another migraine, but they eventually met, with Shahnaian declining to have their meeting filmed. After the meeting, Spelling sobbed as she drove home, commenting on what an excellent guy Shahnaian had always been. When she got home, she confronted McDermott.

Although her meeting with her former husband seemed to be highly cathartic, the actress commented that it also evoked more feelings of resentment toward McDermott. However, she had to acknowledge her choices and live with them.

Spelling commented on how things ended between her and Shahnaian to the camera, saying, "I did so much, I hurt him so bad ... Leaving, I felt very alone ..." She opened up about her meeting to McDermott, and it was clear she regretted hurting her ex-husband by cheating on him.

Although it took a long time and much work from both Spelling and McDermott, the couple was determined to move on with their lives. They presented a unified relationship to the public, but inside sources soon claimed the pair had resorted to sleeping in different bedrooms. Spelling suggested as much on the radio show "Radio Andy." She also stopped wearing her wedding ring for a while and failed to post something commemorating her and McDermott's 15th wedding anniversary.

In 2019, the couple had more problems to face after it was revealed they owed more than $205,000 in debt. This wasn't the first time the pair had financial issues.

Nonetheless, it seems the couple has sorted out their past troubles since they shared images of them together on family outings in 2023. McDermott also shared an image of his wife on her 50th birthday, writing, "You're ageless and will always be my Donna Martin. You make 50 look fabulous!! Happy Birthday, Babe. ❤️"

While Spelling and McDermott built a life for themselves, had their falling out, found their way back to each other, and welcomed a fifth child together, Shahnaian was happily living a life of his own. After his divorce from Spelling, the writer found new love after braving the dating scene once more. In a 2007 interview, he noted:

"I may be hauling around a couple of oversized Pullmans, but somewhere there's an amazing woman tugging around her own carry-on. Together, we'll lighten each other's load, far from the spotlight."

It seems he found his perfect match. In 2019, he wrote on Twitter, "This amazing woman runs a non-profit, raises 2 kids, organizes our lives, makes me laugh — and looks like this while doing it! And it's her BIRTHDAY today!! We love you, Elena Shahnaian!!!"

Spelling's ex, Shahnaian, spends his days as a proud father of two daughters, often sharing images of him with his family on social media. In 2016, the happy dad shared a photo of him and his second wife to mark her birthday. In the caption, he wrote, "HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO THE LOVE OF MY LIFE!!"