Shannen Doherty and Tori Spelling are opening up about the tougher moments in their friendship.
Spelling recently stopped by Doherty’s “Let’s Be Clear” podcast, during which the two reminisced about some of their wild times together going out in Hollywood and all the laughs they share, before transitioning to what led to the break-up of their friendship.
The two revealed they had caught up on a recent flight back from Pittsburgh, during which they “were trying to figure out” what “pivotal moment” ended their friendship. After Doherty pointed it out, Spelling was quick to admit she’s “a swayer,” adding it has always been her “downfall.”
“You were always easily swayed. And it was very frustrating for me because I always used to tell you like, ‘Yeah, Tor, have an opinion.’ Like, you’re smart, you’re funny, you’re talented. I loved you and I respected you and I wanted you to believe in yourself as much as I believed in you. So then, seeing you get swayed, and our friendship ending. We’re on the plane were trying to figure out what was the weak point where you were able to be swayed, and I kind of just went, I can’t keep fighting for this, and I think it was your boyfriend.”
SHANNEN DOHERTY RECALLS ‘90210’ FIGHT WITH JENNIE GARTH: ‘SHE LOST IT ON ME’
At the time, both Doherty and Spelling were in relationships, which they were able to admit “weren’t great” and both of which “had a lot of issues.” The two boyfriends went on to befriend each other, with Spelling saying that “they were better to each other than they were to us.”
Doherty explained she thinks Spelling’s boyfriend got in between them allegedly “because he was abusive,” both physically and verbally, and she couldn’t sit back and watch her friend be treated that way.
“I remember we went to Mexico with our boyfriends, and you called me crying from your room, and you came to my room, and there was a point — I specifically remember looking at you and saying, ‘You have to end it with him, or I’m going to actually kill him. Like — I can’t stand by and watch this.’ All I could think is that, cause you didn’t break up with him. You stayed, and you got tortured for a little bit longer, but we sort of started drifting apart.”
Although this played a huge factor, Doherty was able to pinpoint a few interactions between her and the rest of the “90210” cast, as other moments which caused some contention between her and Spelling. They starred together on the show from 1990 to 1994, when Doherty made her exit.
Throughout the conversation, Doherty repeatedly stressed that the two considered each other “sisters” and the sudden end of their friendship was surprising, with Doherty explaining, “One minute we were friends, and then one minute we weren’t.” She attributed it to the cast members’ inability to confront Spelling, therefore directing all their anger towards her.
“If you were late, I was late. If I was late, you were late, because we were always together,” Doherty explained. “Some cast members didn’t really like that, which I understand as well, but I always got the brunt of it, because they’re not going to say something to the producer’s daughter.”
Doherty shared two moments in which Spelling was swayed by the other cast members, and failed to stand up for her, including arguments over what to buy for the crew as a cast Christmas gift. A majority of the cast wanted to buy a van, which they would donate to charity in the name of the crew, while Doherty wanted to buy something more tangible the crew could actually use.
“I remember that particular moment,” Spelling said. “I was really conflicted, because I had everyone coming at me like, you have to be on this side or that side, and it’s like why? It was one against many, and I was young, and, you know what, f— that. I got easily swayed. It’s not about being young. I want to be accountable and be like, ‘Yeah, I f—ing bought into it.’ I was probably like, ‘Cool, van rocks.’ I didn’t want to do the van. I think we talked about it. I didn’t want to do the van.”
Doherty then shared a second contentious moment between her and the cast, which came after she posed for the cover of Rolling Stone with the late Luke Perry and Jason Priestley.
She explained some cast members, including Spelling, told her she “should not be doing covers without the entire cast [and] that [she] should have said no to Rolling Stone Magazine,” noting the same comment was not made to the boys. Spelling immediately apologized for participating in the ambush, with Doherty saying she could tell Spelling was uncomfortable, but was just waiting for her to “speak up for me.”
“I couldn’t. I’m sorry. I couldn’t,” Spelling said. “I still can’t speak up for myself sometimes — at 50.”
“I think when I was young, it was whoever was the alpha more at the moment would sway me. And I think I couldn’t stand up for myself,” Spelling added. “I didn’t take ownership of anything. So it’s like, you know, nice, nice, nice to everyone. But it’s like you said, have a f—ing opinion about something. And I’m sure I did.”
