Why Shannen Doherty Was Kicked out of 'Beverly Hills, 90210'

In the early 1990s, Shannen Doherty suddenly exited from "Beverly Hills, 90210." The actress and her former castmates have since opened up about what led to her departure and the drama that occurred behind the scenes.

In 1990, Shannen Doherty joined the young "Beverly Hills, 90210" cast. However, four years later, the actress suddenly left the show and was replaced by another star. Many rumors swirled about why she left the show, with people revealing the actress's alleged behavior that upset her cast members.

Shannen later came forward to address the scandal. The actress shed light on what it was actually like to be on the show and what led to her departure — from the tension among the cast to the personal challenges affecting her professional life.

The Brewing Tension on The 'Beverly Hills, 90210' Set

When the first episode of "Beverly Hills, 90210" premiered on Fox on October 4, 1990, few could have predicted that the Aaron Spelling-produced high school saga would become a cultural cornerstone for an entire generation.

What started as a series following the lives of a group of high school students living in the wealthy Beverly Hills neighborhood turned into a treasured piece of television history.

The show addressed social issues, from alcoholism to South African apartheid, making it both controversial and groundbreaking for its time. Through the show, fans were introduced to a slew of fresh-faced actors destined to be stars.

One of these talents was Shannen, who played Brenda Walsh. Brenda was a rebellious and strong-willed teenager navigating the challenges of fitting into the affluent and sometimes superficial social scene of Beverly Hills High School.

However, Shannen's life behind the camera was just as chaotic and dramatic as it was onscreen. As 90210-mania grew, tales of cast unrest began to emerge, primarily centering around Shannen's on and off-set antics.

The tabloids latched on to her bad-girl image, and, as Brian Green — who played David Silver — put it, the actress was just a victim in it all. "Thank God for Shannen — she got us press. But I think she was just the unfortunate victim," Brian shared.

Brian recalled a night out at Roxbury, an LA nightclub, in 1992 when Shannen was involved in an altercation with another patron. According to Brian, Shannen did nothing wrong. If anything, he said the "other person totally started it."

However, that was not how it played out in the media. "Shannen did nothing, and she was the bad girl. Certain people got along with her and certain people didn't, and the people that didn't won," Brian added.

But, according to Charles Rosin, a former executive producer of the hit show, some of Shannen's unhappiness on the show was her fault.

"She had habitual lateness. Her lateness was appalling, and she had a callous attitude and an indifference. She was clearly not very happy on this show anymore," Charles revealed.

The former executive producer detailed an incident where Shannen had allegedly been late for two days. As a result, the cast and crew had to shoot a remake at 7:45 in the morning. While everyone arrived bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, Shannen did not make it to set until 9:45 a.m.

"Once Jason Priestley said, 'I've had it,' it was the beginning of the end," Charles shared. According to Aaron, Shannen did not ruin the show, but noted, "It just upset the cast members tremendously."

Some of Shannen's co-stars had called him, saying, "Please, can't you get her here on time?" Eventually, it all seemed to be too much for Shannen, who left "Beverly Hills, 90210" in the spring of 1994 to pursue an acting career in London.

"She thought it was time to go. And the cast did too," Tori Spelling, Aaron's daughter and fellow star of the show, stated. The following fall, producers recruited "Saved by the Bell" alum Tiffani Thiessen to fill the brunette troublemaker slot.

Tiffani recalled being asked during interviews how it felt replacing Shannen, and the actress revealed, "It was hard. I wasn't replacing anybody."

According to Charles, the iconic show was looking for someone who could take Brenda Walsh's edge to a new level, and Tiffani's undeniable sex appeal led them to believe she was that girl.

From Friends to Foes: Shannen Doherty and Tori Spelling's Relationship on 'Beverly Hills, 90210'

In April 2024, after creating and launching her podcast, "Let's Be Clear with Shannen Doherty," Shannen invited her former "Beverly Hills, 90210" co-star, Tori, onto the podcast.

The actresses opened up about their partying days, bonding over bad boyfriends, and what tore the seemingly inseparable pair apart. The pair grew incredibly close during the first few seasons of "Beverly Hills, 90210," having been less than two years apart in age.

The actresses went everywhere together and began dating two men around the same time, who also ended up being friends. While the relationships with these men did not last, as they had "a lot of issues," Tori and Shannen revealed that they became like "sisters" and "best friends."

Then, they started to drift apart. "One minute we were friends, one minute we weren't," Shannen said. On the April 22, 2024, episode, Shannen recalled that multiple incidents led to the demise of their friendship.

One that stood out in particular was Tori's relationship with her then-abusive boyfriend. Shannen said Tori was young and easily "swayed," and the actress found it difficult to sit back and watch Tori get "tortured."

So, Shannen gave Tori an ultimatum, which included Tori leaving her boyfriend. According to Shannen, Tori stayed with said boyfriend, which caused a rift in their relationship.

More pressure was placed on their friendship as tensions rose between Shannen and her "Beverly Hills, 90210" castmates. The actress recalled how one morning she reported to set and was approached by other cast members.

They felt she should not have participated in a Rolling Stone cover that only featured her and two other castmates, instead of the entire cast.

Tori was eventually roped into the confrontation, and Shannen said, "I felt really bad for you, but I was also like, 'Speak up for me. Speak up. Speak up. Speak up.'"

On the podcast, Tori apologized for not being there for Shannen during her battle against her castmates. Despite the rift in their relationship during their younger years, the actresses seemingly found their way back to each other as the years went on.

Shannen Doherty's Side of the Story

On May 17, 2000, the final episode of "Beverly Hills, 90210" aired. Two days later, the cast members sat down with Entertainment Weekly to discuss some of the show's ups and downs. During that interview, Shannen called out some of the things people had said about her and accused her of.

One of the things the actress said was not true was that she was often late to set. According to Shannen, she was late maybe four times in four years. However, she alleged that other cast members were "extremely late" a "bunch of times."

"I don't think that lateness had anything to do with it…. There were a lot of petty jealousies on that show, and I had never dealt with that before," the actress said.

According to Shannen, there was "definitely a time" that she did not want to be there, as she was unhappy. The actress acknowledged that might have sounded "odd," and perhaps "unappreciative," that she was unhappy while making "a lot of money" filming a hit TV show.

However, that was her reality at the time. "It's just that the sacrifice at the time seemed too large to me. The sacrifice of a camera pointed in my face 24 hours a day while I was desperately trying to grow up [...]. I mean, I was a teenager," Shannen shared.

The actress further elaborated on the hard time she had on the set of "Beverly Hills, 90210" on her podcast in 2024, as well as what was happening in her personal life.

According to Shannen, the "Beverly Hills, 90210" cast was being worked like horses. They were reportedly working 15-16 hour days, five days a week. Her rebellious streak and partying ways didn't help, as the actress recalled working all day, being out all night, and reporting to set the next day in the previous day's makeup.

Shannen revealed that she was in a "horrible" marriage towards her last season, which made it difficult for her to get to work on time consistently. The actress's father was also incredibly sick, which also took a toll on her professional life.

However, the actress showed great accountability, stating that it was unfair that her castmates had to wait around for her on set, leading them to work even longer days.

"I definitely went through a lot of growing pains on that show. There were beautiful moments for me, and there were really hard moments for me," the actress said.

Shannen wished that someone could have sat her down and guided her. Had the young star been advised that she needed to get a grip on her personal and professional life, perhaps things could have ended differently.

Sadly, she died on July 13, 2024, at 53. The actress was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015 and fought a long and brave battle. Her longtime publicist confirmed the heartbreaking news, revealing that the former "Beverly Hills, 90210" star passed away surrounded by her loved ones.

"When you ask yourself, 'Why me? Why did I get cancer?' and then 'Why did my cancer come back? Why am I stage 4?' that leads you to look for the bigger purpose in life," Shannen explained.

Shannen Doherty spent her last moments raising awareness and funds for cancer research and proving that people with terminal cancer still have plenty to contribute to the world.