On the 15th anniversary of Brittany Murphy’s death, her co-stars are reflecting on her final days and the challenges she faced.

The 32-year-old actress was found unconscious in the bathroom of her home, which she shared with her husband, Simon Monjack, and her mother, Sharon. Her cause of death was ruled as pneumonia.

Murphy’s co-stars from her last film, Something Wicked, described her as “frail” and a shadow of her former self in the months leading up to her death. “She was just a little bird you wanted to be around and help,” actress Katie O’Grady told People.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Murphy became severely ill with flu-like symptoms and collapsed in her mother’s arms, telling her, “Mommy, I can’t catch my breath. Help me.” Coroner Asst. Chief Ed Winter confirmed she had pneumonia, was severely anemic, and had been taking medication, all of which contributed to her death.

Five months later, Monjack also passed away, with his autopsy revealing similar symptoms of anemia and pneumonia.

While filming in Eugene, Oregon, O’Grady noticed troubling signs regarding Murphy’s mental and physical health. The actress had lost significant weight in her final years, fueling speculation about an eating disorder, which Murphy denied. Despite her denial, O’Grady was concerned about her low energy and visibly frail state.

“She seemed to lack someone strong in her life who could support her,” O’Grady recalled. “She really needed that.”

Even amid her struggles, Murphy remained kind and gentle to those around her. Her co-stars and crew described her as “frail” and “going through a hard time,” prompting them to treat her with care.

O’Grady remembered Murphy as “petite” and so delicate she could be “scooped up with little effort.” Despite her limited energy, she made meaningful connections with those she worked with, always taking the time to be warm and kind.

“She deserved a different story,” O’Grady reflected. “Her core and spirit were so good. She wasn’t someone who hurt others or made them feel small. She didn’t deserve what happened to her, but that was her story, and it feels like it was meant to be.”

Trista Jordan, the makeup artist on Something Wicked, shared her own memories of Murphy in the 2021 documentary What Happened, Brittany Murphy?

“Her eyes were sunken, and she seemed so sad,” Jordan said. “She wasn’t herself. She was in so much pain, with legs so weak she could barely stand.”