‘Beverly Hills, 90210’ Star Jason Priestley Reveals What Could Have Saved Shannen Doherty’s Job

Getty

Jason Priestley believes things might have turned out differently for Shannen Doherty on “Beverly Hills, 90210” if she had been more open about what was happening in her personal life before she was fired.

Priestley, 57, played Brandon Walsh opposite Doherty’s Brenda Walsh during the show’s early seasons. Doherty exited the series after season 4 amid reports of difficult behavior on set.

In a recent appearance on Pete Ferriero’s “The Slice of Life Show” podcast, Priestley reflected on the circumstances surrounding his former co-star’s departure and its impact on the cast.

“There was never an issue between her and I specifically,” Priestley said. “I loved Shannen. I loved working with her. She was a great actress. She was a great scene partner. I only have fond memories of working with her on the show.”

When asked whether firing Doherty had been the right decision, Priestley acknowledged that the situation was complicated.

“That’s a tough question,” he admitted.

“I feel like, given the information that we had, we made the only choice that we could,” he continued. “Had Shannen been more forthcoming about what was happening with her in her life at that point in time, I think we could have made a different choice.”

Jason Priestley Says Losing Shannen Doherty Was ‘Scary’ for the ‘90210’ Cast

Priestley explained that removing Doherty from the series was difficult because of her importance to the show’s success.

Doherty had been one of the original stars when “Beverly Hills, 90210” premiered in 1990, and her character’s relationship with her twin brother Brandon was central to the early storylines.

Priestley described her as “part of the secret sauce that made the show successful.”

“We were going to lose that. As much as we knew it was going to impact her life and her career, we knew it was going to impact our show as well,” he said. “The decision to let her go was not one that was taken lightly.”

The series continued for six more seasons after Doherty’s departure, ending in 2000.

Doherty Previously Revealed How Her Marriage Affected Her Work

Doherty addressed her behavior during the show’s fourth season in a January 2024 episode of her “Let’s Be Clear with Shannen Doherty” podcast, which featured Priestley as a guest.

During their conversation, she explained that her marriage to then-husband Ashley Hamilton had contributed to her difficulties arriving on set on time.

“Toward my last season, I was in a really horrible marriage, and there were things that were transpiring in that marriage that made it really hard for me to consistently be on time for work,” Doherty recalled.

She said her father was seriously ill at the time, while Hamilton was struggling with drug addiction.

“I didn’t even want to leave the house because I was scared that [Hamilton] would go and get drugs,” she explained.

Doherty acknowledged that she should have been more transparent with the show’s producers about what was happening in her personal life.

She also said she wished someone had confronted her about her behavior and warned her to “get your (expletive) together” before the decision was made to fire her.

Doherty passed away in July 2024 at age 53 following a lengthy battle with cancer.

Priestley was among the former cast members who publicly paid tribute to the actress.

“Shocked and saddened to hear about the passing of my friend Shannen. She was a force of nature and I will miss her. Sending love and light to her family in this dark time,” he wrote on Instagram.

Priestley Recently Revealed Why He Wanted ‘Beverly Hills, 90210’ to End Earlier

Priestley also recently discussed his own departure from the long-running series.

During an October appearance on former co-star Jennie Garth’s “9021OMG” podcast, he revealed that he had approached executive producer Aaron Spelling about ending the show while it was still successful.

“There was lots of crazy stuff that happened in that eighth season,” Priestley recalled. “It started to feel very daytime-y in a way.”

According to Priestley, Spelling rejected the suggestion and made it clear that he had no intention of ending the series.

“They’re going to pull me off this set in a body bag,” Priestley recalled the producer telling him.

Spelling reportedly insisted that he was “never ending the show.”

Priestley ultimately left “Beverly Hills, 90210” at the beginning of season 9, one season before its series finale.