NEWS'Clueless' Star Elisa Donovan Says She 'Wasn’t Surprised' by Brittany Murphy’s Death
Elisa Donovan said she ‘wasn’t surprised’ by costar Brittany Murphy’s death.
Sept. 22 2026, Published 4:51 a.m. ET
Elisa Donovan is looking back on one of the most painful moments surrounding her former Clueless costar Brittany Murphy’s final years.
Donovan, who played Amber Mariens in the beloved 1995 teen comedy, recently recalled learning about Murphy’s death in December 2009 and admitted that, while she was deeply saddened, she “wasn’t surprised.”
Brittany Murphy died on December 20, 2009, at her home in Los Angeles.
Elisa Donovan Opened Up About Brittany Murphy’s Troubling Final Years
Brittany Murphy’s cause of death was ruled accidental.
Speaking on the "Still Here Hollywood" podcast, the 55-year-old recalled, “Someone called me and was like, ‘Did you hear about Brittany?’ And I said, ‘No, Brittany who?’ And they said Murphy.”
“And then they told me that she had died, but nobody knew [how]. And I have to say, my first thought was I wasn’t really surprised," she added.
Murphy was just 32 when she died at her Hollywood Hills home.
The Los Angeles County coroner ultimately determined that pneumonia and anemia, along with “multiple drug intoxication” involving prescription and over-the-counter medication, contributed to her death, which was ruled accidental.
Elisa Donovan revealed a hairdresser also worried about Brittany Murphy.
For Donovan, however, memories of Murphy’s final years had already left her concerned.
The actresses shared a hairdresser, who she said had privately expressed worries about the late Hollywood star.
“She would, in confidence, say to me, ‘I’m worried about [Brittany],’ because she would go to her house,” she recalled, adding, “And I said, I am worried about her but I’m not a close enough friend of hers, you know? I’m not in her life."
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Elisa Donovan Said Brittany Murphy Didn’t Seem ‘Healthy’ at Their Last Meeting
Elisa Donovan recalled Brittany Murphy’s struggles at the GLAAD Awards.
She also remembered seeing Murphy at the 2005 GLAAD Media Awards.
Although the 8 Mile alum greeted her warmly, Donovan said something about the late actress immediately seemed wrong.
“She always makes you feel like she’s ecstatic to see you,” she recalled.
“She’s like, ‘Elisa, hi hi!’ You know, like, big hugs," she added.
But then the Sabrina the Teenage Witch star noticed her physical condition.
“Her knees were buckling. Her legs were shaking. I was like, ‘Are you okay?’ And she’s like, ‘Yeah, what do you mean?’ And I went, ‘Something is not okay with this person," she said.
Elisa Donovan recalled Brittany Murphy’s ‘hummingbird’ energy on ‘Clueless.’
Donovan, who has openly discussed her own past struggle with anorexia, said she believed Murphy was dealing with serious problems, although she didn’t feel it was her place to intervene.
“I was looking at her, and I was like, ‘She has an eating disorder, and she has a drug problem. But she had so many people around her, what am I going to do?" she recalled thinking.
Despite the difficult memories, the A Night at the Roxbury actress remembers Murphy with affection, describing her as “so vibrant” and “so talented.”
“I always say she’s like a hummingbird,” she said of The Uptown Girls alum's frenetic energy.
Looking back, she said she felt “really sad for her” when she learned of her death.
“But I wasn’t surprised,” she said, adding, “She was not healthy.”
