Shady Details That Have Come Out About Shannen Doherty's Estranged Husband Kurt Iswarienko

For "Charmed" star Shannen Doherty, it seemed like the third time really was a charm when she married hubby No. 3, photographer Kurt Iswarienko. He remained a steadfast source of support for many years as Doherty underwent several cancer treatments, but when he reportedly broke their marital vows, it sent Doherty's life into a tailspin at the worst possible time.

Signs that Iswarienko possibly had a shady side first emerged after he tied the knot with Doherty in 2011. He had previously been married to actor Taryn Band, whose mother told Star magazine that Iswarienko did not wait to end that relationship before he began romancing Doherty. Band's short but scathing comment about Iswarienko's alleged infidelity was, "He's dead to me" (via Radar).

Doherty and Iswarienko eventually put that scandalous chapter behind them. While Doherty once had a reputation for being a bit of a bad girl, she was recast as a sympathetic figure when she revealed that she had terminal cancer. She also painted Iswarienko as the perfect partner as she faced the toughest challenge of her life. In a 2019 interview with People, Doherty even said that her diagnosis had improved the state of her union. "Kurt and I have a much deeper appreciation for each other now," she shared, adding that she and her partner had stopped arguing and giving each other the silent treatment.

But while Doherty spent years convinced that her marriage was better than ever, she eventually learned some information that changed everything.

In a 2019 Health magazine interview, Shannen Doherty remembered witnessing the depth of Kurt Iswarienko's feelings for her when she was undergoing chemotherapy and became extremely sick. "Kurt was crying, saying, 'Please don't leave me,'" she recalled. Iswarienko also said all the right things about his then-wife, telling Elle in 2020, "I don't see a cancer patient when I look at Shannen. I see the same woman I fell in love with." Doherty had previously praised him for honoring their marriage vows in a 2016 Instagram post — but he ultimately wouldn't fulfill his "'til death do us part" promise.

After Doherty announced that she was pulling the plug on her marriage in April 2023, her rep, Leslie Sloane, revealed that going through a divorce was not something the "Beverly Hills, 90210" star desired. Sloane also told Page Six, "You can contact Kurt's agent, Collier Grimm, at PICTUREKID, as she is intimately involved.'"

Doherty elaborated on the cause of the breakdown of her marriage on her "Let's Be Clear" podcast. She recalled how she was preparing to have a brain tumor removed when she learned something that made her decide that she did not want Iswarienko to join her at the hospital as planned. "My husband had been carrying on an affair for 2 years," she said. Sources confirmed to TMZ that Iswarienko and the aforementioned Grimm had started seeing each other but insisted that the relationship began after Iswarienko and Doherty quietly separated.

In legal filings obtained by People in June 2024, Shannen Doherty blasted Kurt Iswarienko for purportedly trying to delay their divorce. She suggested that he had concocted a morbid, miserly scheme to avoid paying the $15,434 in monthly alimony payments that she was asking for. "It is simply not right that Kurt be permitted to prolong our divorce in hopes that I die before he is required to pay me," she wrote.

Doherty explained that she needed the money because her own earnings had decreased exponentially after her cancer diagnosis. According to the actor, Iswarienko was spending extravagantly while claiming that he was unable to help her financially. The documents also included a reference to Iswarienko's alleged affair with Collier Grimm. "Kurt has been utilizing the airplane, spending thousands of dollars at medical spas, jewelry stores, Gucci, and on flights for his 'agent,'" she wrote (via In Touch). Iswarienko's attorney denied Doherty's allegations, but if the photographer really was trying to get out of paying spousal support, he got his wish; the divorce was finalized the day before Doherty died.

Upon learning of Doherty's death, one of her close friends, Tara Furiani, had something to say about Iswarienko's actions. "Her pain and suffering in the months preceding it didn't have to be so profound if her husband was just a decent human being," she wrote on LinkedIn. "Could have just displayed a little humanity to his dying wife."