Brittany Murphy was a beloved actress who died in 2009. She was just 32 when she passed away from complications related to pneumonia, and now one of her former “Clueless” co-stars is reflecting on her death and how concerned she was for her, years before she died.
‘Clueless’ Star Elisa Donovan Discusses Brittany Murphy’s Health
GettyIn an appearance on the “Still Here Hollywood” podcast, Elisa Donovan spoke about Murphy’s passing, and while she said she “wasn’t surprised,” she also voiced her concern. “They told me that she had died, but nobody knew, and I have to say, my first thought was, I wasn’t surprised,” she said, the Daily Mail reports. “We also shared a hairdresser, not an on-set person but our hairdresser in life, and she would, in confidence, say to me, ‘I’m worried about her.’ Because she would go to her house.”
Donovan was worried about Murphy but felt she was “not a close enough friend of hers to step in and intervene.” The last time she saw her was four years before Murphy passed at the 2005 GLAAD Awards, and Donovan remembered feeling worried about Murphy’s health and wondering why no one was helping her. But again, she felt helpless. “She had so many people around her. What am I gonna do? This person from her past… come in and save the day or something?” Donovan questioned.
Of the last meeting, Donovan said of Murphy: “Her knees were buckling. Her legs were shaking. And I was like, ‘Are you okay?’ And she was like, ‘Yeah! What? What do you mean?’ and I went, ‘Something is not okay with this person.’” Donovan also discussed how Murphy stopped booking A-list jobs, and she felt “just so sad for her.” She added, “But I also, like I said, I wasn’t surprised.”
The Circumstances Surrounding Brittany Murphy’s Passing
Before her death, Murphy had been experiencing flu-like symptoms, but she had not sought medical attention. Her autopsy was performed by Dr. Scheinin, who listed pneumonia as her primary cause of death, with iron-deficiency anemia and “multiple drug intoxication from prescription and over-the-counter medication as contributing factors,” People reports.
In the HBO Max miniseries, “What Happened, Brittany Murphy?,” released in 2021, Dr. Scheinin discussed Murphy’s anemia. “If she had had this test, let’s say, a week or two before dying, and she had a result like this, any decent doctor would have her in the ER, hooked up to a transfusion as quick as they possibly could, because this is a life-threatening situation,” Dr. Scheinin said, People reports.
Murphy was found responsive in her Los Angeles home on December 20, 2009, and died later in hospital. She is remembered for her roles in “Clueless,” “Girl, Interrupted,” “8 Mile,” and “Little Black Book.” Her heartbreaking last words were reportedly to her mother. Her husband, Simon Monjack, who died five months after she did, revealed in an interview with Larry King in February 2010 she had said, “Mom, I’m dying; I love you,” People reports.
