The Truth About Brittany Murphy's Death

Brittany Murphy's death in 2009 caught fans by total surprise. The actress was just 32-years-old when she was found dead in her Los Angeles home. Murphy, who was famous for her roles in the 1995 film Clueless and 8 Mile, seemed to be overall healthy prior to her death.

The Los Angeles County coroner ruled that Murphy's death was "accidental" and determined that it was caused "by a combination of pneumonia, an iron deficiency and 'multiple drug intoxication,'" according to CNN. While people were shocked, many accepted this explanation for her death.

It wasn't until Murphy's husband, British screenwriter Simon Monjack, was found dead in their home only a few months later when people started getting suspicious, per the news outlet.

A new documentary has aired on Investigation Discovery called Brittany Murphy: An ID Mystery, and this has revived considerable interest in the case and many believe now that Murphy's death may not have been an accident after all. Keep reading to hear the suspicious details.

Brittany Murphy's death was a massive shock to fans all over the world. The 32-year-old actress seemed, at least outwardly, to have a perfectly normal life and a healthy lifestyle. But it seems like there was way more going on beneath the surface.

A press release for the documentary, Brittany Murphy: An ID Mystery, explained: "Brittany Murphy is a rising star who had it all, beauty, fame, and success ... but she also had secrets."

They went on: "When she is found dead in her Los Angeles home at just 32 years old, Hollywood and legions of fans are left in disbelief. While her autopsy reveals that she died of natural causes, many believe foul play is involved," according to CNN.

The documentary focuses in a large part on Murphy's husband, Simon Monjack, and her mother, Sharon Murphy, who embarked "on a bizarre media blitz, creating more questions than answers" after Murphy died, per CNN.

When Monjack was found dead in their home in 2010, just five months after Murphy died, people started wondering what was going on. Monjack was only 40 at the time of death, according to Fox News. Meanwhile, there were some really strange details about Monjack's death that just don't sit right.

People accepted Brittany Murphy's surprise death as an accident but when her husband, Simon Monjack, was found dead in their home only 5 months later, people got suspicious. Not only that, but Murphy's mother, Sharon Murphy, went on a media frenzy after her daughter's death, which caused more confusion. So things were already strange with Sharon Murphy when Monjack was found dead in bed next to her.

According to CNN, people started connecting Murphy's death with her husband's because, just months later, "Monjack perishes under strikingly similar circumstances — in the same bed he and Brittany once shared, only this time, allegedly with Brittany's mother sleeping beside him."

The outlet also adds that Murphy's father, Angelo Bertolotti, found his daughter's death extremely suspicious and in a final interview, he cast "doubt on the conclusion that she died of natural causes and reveals bizarre allegations against other family members," per CNN.

According to Fox News, Bertolotti couldn't understand how Murphy, who had the money to see a doctor, didn't seek medical help. Not only that, but she had prescriptions for strong opiates at the time. Plus, there was one more detail that came back from the lab that just didn't add up.

Brittany Murphy's father, Angelo Bertolotti, never believed the story that his daughter died of pneumonia and an iron deficiency. According to Fox News, Bertolotti wanted answers for his daughter's death and even discussed excavation. However, he didn't have power of attorney and couldn't have legally accomplished that.

However, Bertolotti did have Murphy's hair tested and the lab report showed "the alarming presence of 10 potentially toxic heavy metals from a hair strand sample." It was possible, from this report, that Murphy may have been poisoned.

However, L.A. county assistant chief coroner Ed Winter shut this down and said the lab results were because Murphy dyed her hair. According to Fox News, he said: "She wasn't poisoned, and we stand by the cause of death. She died from over-the-counter medicines, pneumonia and anemia."

Bertolotti was estranged from Murphy and her mother, Sharon Murphy, and he never got the answers he wanted. Bertolotti died in 2019 at the age of 92, according to CNN.

Forensic pathologist Dr. Cyril Wecht, who was brought in by Bertolotti to investigate Murphy's mysterious death, said that the case may never really be clarified, per Fox News. He said: "It's all too late now."