Sarah Michelle Gellar has paid tribute to her close friend Shannen Doherty following her death.
On 13 July, the pop icon passed away after a nine-year battle with breast cancer.
Doherty’s publicist, Leslie Sloane, told PEOPLE that “the devoted daughter, sister, aunt and friend was surrounded by her loved ones as well as her dog, Bowie”.
In an Instagram post on Monday (15 July), Gellar celebrated “30 years of friendship” with various photos of the iconic duo together, as well as a heartfelt caption about how best to honour Doherty.
“I keep reminding myself it only hurts this much because, there was so much love,” the Buffy the Vampire Slayer star wrote.
“Thank you, for all your kind words and support. I love all the messages about how @theshando was important to you. So let’s honor her. More than anything, Shan loves animals, especially dogs.
“In her memory let’s support our favorite animal charities. Whether that’s donating money, stopping by your local shelter and just offering cuddles and walks to animals housed there or even just tagging them in the comments so other people can learn about their work.”
“I know that would make our girl happy (and illicit that deep throaty laugh we all loved),” Gellar concluded, before providing a link to the Lange Foundation in the comments.
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Doherty was best known for her roles as Heather Duke in Heathers (1989), Brenda Walsh in Beverley Hills 90210 (1990-1994), and Rene Mosier in Mallrats (1995), all of which have made a significant impact on popular culture.
Between 1998 and 2001, she memorably portrayed Prue Halliwell on Charmed, which is widely regarded as one of the best fantasy shows in history. Her character has also been acclaimed as one of the most iconic witches of all time.
In the wake of Doherty’s heartbreaking passing, many of her Charmed co-stars shared tributes, including Brian Krause (Leo), Ted King (Andy), Dorian Gregory (Darryl), Finola Hughes (Patty) and Jennifer Rhodes (Grams).
Rose McGowan, who replaced Doherty in season four as the Halliwell’s long-lost sister Paige Matthews, described her as “a soft-hearted badass as there ever was”: “A force of energy that will live forever in hearts.”
Alyssa Milano, who played Phoebe Halliwell for Charmed’s entire eight-season run, said in a statement: “It’s no secret that Shannen and I had a complicated relationship, but at its core was someone I deeply respected and was in awe of.”
Doherty’s on-screen brother in 90210, Jason Priestly, described her as a “force of nature”.
“Shocked and saddened to hear about the passing of my friend Shannen…. I will miss her. Sending love and light to her family in this dark time,“ he wrote.
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