NEWSBrittany Murphy 'Suffered for Months' Before Her Tragic Death at 32, Costars Reveal: 'She Deserved a Different Story'
Brittany Murphy died at 32 years old on December 20, 2009.
Brittany Murphy's costars from her final film, Something Wicked, have recently opened up about the challenges the late actress faced before her untimely death at the age of 32 on December 20, 2009.
Murphy's final days were tragic as she battled flu-like symptoms and struggled to catch her breath. Eventually, she passed away in December of that year due to pneumonia, leaving behind a legacy of memorable performances.
Brittany Murphy died at 32 on December 20, 2009.
According to the late actress's costar Katie O'Grady, who worked alongside Murphy in Eugene, Ore., where they filmed the supernatural thriller, the actress was clearly going through a tough time.
O'Grady recalled that the cast and crew felt the need to be gentle around Murphy due to her delicate state, emphasizing her petite stature that made it seem like she could easily be "scooped up."
"She was just a little bird that you wanted to be around, and you wanted to help," the Portlandia star revealed.
Brittany Murphy's final film was 'Something Wicked.'
O'Grady is comforted by the fact that Murphy likely would have wanted the project to be seen.
"She really deserved a different story. Her core is so good. Her spirit is so good," she said. "That was not a person who was out in the world to hurt or make people feel small. That was not a woman who deserved that story. But that was her story and that was why she was here, and that was all that was meant to be."
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Brittany Murphy's castmates remember working with the late actress.
"Her eyes were so sunken, and she just seemed so sad," Something Wicked makeup artist Trista Jordan said in the 2021 documentary What Happened, Brittany Murphy? "She wasn't herself. She was in so much pain. She had Bambi's legs and couldn't stand up."
Another costar, October Moore, recalled getting ready to shoot a dramatic, confrontational scene with Murphy. Moore claimed their nerves were building as the two sat opposite one another at a tall bistro table, and the actress couldn't stop fidgeting with her slip-on shoes. Despite being nervous, she looked up and met Murphy's eye — and the King of the Hill star winked. "Just take them off," she whispered playfully.
Other costars recalled that she "suffered for months" before she died.
The Something Wicked premiere in 2014 was a bittersweet occasion for those who had known and worked with Murphy. The cast felt a profound sense of loss, choosing to remember the late actress's legacy in their own way.
Brittany Murphy died at Cedars Sinai Medical Center in L.A. around 10:00 a.m. on December 20, 2009.
Though she was close with her mother, Sharon, colleagues noted the omnipresence of Murphy's British screenwriter husband, Simon Monjack. While he was described as protective, there was a sense that his impact on the star's well-being may not have been entirely positive. Monjack later died five months after his wife in her Hollywood Hills home.
People interviewed O'Grady about her experience working with Murphy.
