Why Shannen Doherty’s Death Was So ‘Painful’ for Kelly Ripa

Kelly Ripa is remembering her last conversation with the late Shannen Doherty.

Ripa, 53, interviewed Doherty on her podcast, “Let’s Talk Off Camera,” just weeks before the Beverly Hills, 90210 and Charmed star died in July following a lengthy battle with breast cancer, and recalls feeling “crushed” over Doherty’s deteriorating condition.

The talk show host told Entertainment Tonight in an interview published on Tuesday, September 10, that she was “constantly” trying to set Doherty up with people and recalled a poignant comment the actress made in their final interview.

“I always had an idea in my mind as to who might be a good match with Shannen,” Ripa said. “But the last conversation, she actually said to me, ‘I’m kind of a tough sell because I don’t have a lot of time left.’”

Shannen Doherty's Life in Photos

“So that, I think, is what I took away, that I was crushed that she seemed to know that her time was very, very limited,” Ripa continued.

The Live With Kelly and Mark star added, “I will say, she was telling me about her treatments and it was so brutal and painful. It sounds very glib but the fact she’s no longer in pain — physical pain — provides everyone that knew and loved her with a little peace.”

Ripa also revealed why Doherty’s death was so difficult to process.

“It was just painful because we’re the same age, we grew up together, and I always thought she got the rawest deal of anyone in show business,” she said, though she didn’t elaborate further. “I still believe that. I stand by that.”

During her career, Doherty was fired from Beverly Hills, 90210 and Charmed at the height of each show’s success.

In January, Doherty recalled on her podcast, “Let’s Be Clear,” that she was in a “really horrible marriage” when she was fired from 90210, and there were “things that were transpiring in that marriage that made it really hard for [her] to consistently be on time for work.” (Doherty wed Ashley Hamilton in October 1993 and filed for divorce in April 1994.)

Doherty acknowledged that it “became a very big problem” for her costars because they would have to wait for her and would end up working longer hours.

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“It wasn’t anybody’s responsibility but mine, but I certainly wish that I had been sort of sat down and sort of looked at and said, ‘Listen, the end result is going to be this, you are going to get fired because none of us are willing to put up with it anymore,’” she said of the show’s producers. “‘And I understand that you have an issue in your personal life, but that also can’t bleed into work, you also have to get your s–t together.’”

Doherty died at the age of 53 on July 13 after battling stage IV breast cancer for several years.

“It is with a heavy heart that I confirm the passing of actress Shannen Doherty. On Saturday, July 13, she lost her battle with cancer after many years of fighting the disease,” Doherty’s publicist Leslie Sloane said in a statement to Us Weekly. “The devoted daughter, sister, aunt and friend was surrounded by her loved ones as well as her dog, Bowie. The family asks for their privacy at this time so they can grieve in peace.”