Shannen Doherty had a list of people she didn't want at her funeral.

Shannen Doherty was an iconic actress, beloved for roles in 90210, Heathers, Charmed and more. But as she continued to grace our screens, she was also facing the "fight for her life."

Doherty lived with cancer for nine years, following her first breast cancer diagnosis in 2015.

In the years since, the actress continued to share updates with fans as she went into remission in 2017, before the cancer returned in 2019. In 2020 she announced her diagnosis of metastatic stage IV cancer, which had spread to her bones. In 2023, the cancer had spread to her brain, and she underwent intense surgery.

The actress sadly passed away on July 13, 2024. She was 53.

With time to prepare for her death, Doherty had publicly shared her wishes for her funeral and 'burial'.

"I want [my remains] to be mixed with my dog, and I want it to be mixed with my dad. I do not want to be buried," she said in a January episode of her podcast, Let It Be Clear.

She said she wanted loved ones to spread her ashes in a "mixture of ways," including using them to blend with soil to "grow them into a tree." She spoke about potentially wanting her and her father's ashes to be spread in Malibu, California, where they spent "precious time" together.

As for her funeral, Doherty knew who she did — and didn't — want to attend.

"There's a lot of people that I think would show up that I don't want there," she said. "I don't want them there because their reasons for showing up aren't necessarily the best reasons, like, they don't really like me and, you know, they have their reasons and good for them, but they don't actually really like me enough to show up to my funeral.

"[They'll show up] because it's the politically correct thing to do, and they don't want to look bad, so I kinda want to take the pressure off them and I want my funeral to be like a love fest. I don't want people to be crying or people to privately be like, 'Thank God that b**ch is dead now,'" Doherty added.

Shannen Doherty has passed away, aged 53. Image: Getty.

Doherty's candid honesty as she lived with cancer was refreshing in its raw vulnerability. She shared her experience with fans, detailing the moments of hope and heartbreak as she faced them. And it meant the world to her followers.

"You were my inspiration during my fight with cancer. You showed me how to be strong and positive while fighting the unfair enemy. You showed me how to be strong in front of my loved ones," one shared on Doherty's Instagram today.

Her final Instagram post is indicative of her enduring spirit in living with cancer. On June 26, Doherty shared a snippet from a recent episode of her podcast Let It Be Clear, in which she spoke of being "hopeful" for the first time in months despite her "scary" update.

Listen to The Spill hosts explain the Shannen Doherty story you won’t hear after her death. 

Doherty had just started undergoing another round of chemo, and spoke through the conflicting emotions she felt about being hooked up to a port, a small implant that attaches to a vein, for the delivery of chemotherapy medications.

"It's really hard, the idea of going through this all over again," she said on the podcast.

"Yes, I knew I had stage IV. Yes, I knew it was serious, and I've taken steps to take care of my family and clean up a lot of stuff. But when you have to go to the hospital and go under and have a port put in, it becomes real in a very different way," she continued. 

Shannen had a career spanning four decades. Image: Getty.

"I have no idea how long I'm going to be on the chemo for. I have no idea if it's going to be three months, or six months, if we're going to change again. That's not something I can predict, it's not something my doctors can predict, and it's scary. It's like a big wake-up call. But there is some positivity there. There are a lot more protocols for me to try.

"For the first time in a couple of months probably I feel hopeful because there are so many more protocols now. Whereas before I was hopeful, but I was getting prepared. And now I'm like oh I don't need to be prepared I need to go on a vacation, go on a boat again and explore places," she said, with a laugh.

"I will forever be that girl who is bucket list, bucket list, bucket list, even if I was in remission I would have a bucket list. So there is hope, mixed with my own sadness. I just don't know how I'm going to feel [on these rounds of chemotherapy]. It's really scary. Most people who know me, know I'm a control freak. And with cancer there is really no controlling it."

The episode was recorded before she went into hospital to receive her port and begin the first rounds of chemotherapy. Three weeks later, her publicist Leslie Sloane confirmed the news of her passing.

"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," Sloane shared. 

READ MORE: Shannen Doherty wasn't afraid of death, but she was not done with living.

Feature Image: Getty.