ONTD

Brenda Walsh returning to 90210?



Those of you who know me know that nothing brings me more happiness than a good, old-fashioned Shannen Doherty item. So it seems only fitting that I should kick off my new EW gig with a juicy yarn about the legendary Hollywood hellraiser. And it's not just any yarn, either -- it's the best yarn ever!

Multiple sources confirm to me exclusively that Doherty is currently engaged in formal talks to -- wait for it, wait for it -- reprise her role of Brenda Walsh on The CW's breathlessly anticipated 90210 update!

(The crowd roars. The crowd's on their feet! The crowd.. is... me!)

According to my Peach Pit mole, Gabe Sachs and Jeff Judah, the producers behind el nuevo 90210, recently met with the tempestuous tabloid mainstay to gauge her interest in returning to the zip code from which she was banished in 1994. And by all accounts, she is interested. "But," whispers an insider with close ties to the reboot, "she wants to know what the story is going to be first." She also wants more money than they're apparently offering.

Yet creative/financial issues may not be the biggest obstacles standing in the way of Doherty's homecoming. The anger-management poster gal has left a long list of enemies in her wake, among them once and possibly future co-stars Tori Spelling and Jennie Garth. Doherty and Garth, in particular, got along so badly, they were like a '90s version of Bette Davis and Joan Crawford. (A fistfight between them was even chronicled in Spelling's recent memoir.) So while Doherty's willingness to return suggests she's ready to let bygones be bygones, the feeling may not be mutual.



"There's still some animosity there," acknowledges a source, who says Garth wasn't exactly jumping for joy upon learning of Doherty's potential hiring. However, counters Garth, "A lot of time has passed, and I'm a big girl. I'd have no problem with her coming on the show."

That still doesn't resolve the pesky issue of Doherty's less-than-stellar rep. "They should demand good behavior and get rid of her quick if they don't get it," muses one top TV producer. "The danger is that the show becomes a big hit, and her participation is seen as essential. If that happens, and she's still a disruptive, dysfunctional actor, then they've got a big mess."

But nearly everyone seems to agree on one thing: It's a risk worth taking. "This is a win-win for all parties," points out a 90210 source. "Shannen has a shot to get back in the public eye and make things right with the show that gave her her career, and the CW can generate some much-needed buzz and guarantee some major sampling of 90210."

Not to mention the fact that I'll get to write more Shannen Doherty stories!

So, what do you think? Does Shannen need 90210 more than it needs her? And would you be more inclined, less inclined or as inclined to watch 90210 with Doherty on board? Sound off in the comments section below!

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