Where Is Brittany Murphy's Mom Now? What We Know About Sharon Murphy's Life 15 Years After Her Daughter's Tragic Death

Mar. 15, 2025

Sharon Murphy and Brittany Murphy during 2002 VH1 Vogue Fashion Awards at Radio City Music Hall in New York City.Photo:Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic

Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic

TheCluelessstar was born on Nov. 10, 1977, to Sharon and her father, Anthony Bertolotti, in Atlanta. However, Bertolotti and Sharon split when Brittany was 3 years old, and she grew up in Edison, N.J., with her mom.

The two developed a close mother-daughter relationship, with Sharon living with Brittany and her husband, Simon Monjack, at the end of the actress' life. It was Sharon who discovered her daughter in thebathroom of their home, as she told her mom, “Mommy, I can’t catch my breath. Help me,” before passing out in her arms, according toThe Hollywood Reporter.

Brittany died at 32 years old, with her cause of death noted as pneumonia. Sharon continued to live with Monjack until he died from similar causes in their home five months later.

From raising her as a single mom in New Jersey to supporting her acting career, here’s everything to know about Brittany Murph’s mom Sharon Murphy — and where she is now.

She raised Brittany as a single mom

Brittany Murphy and mom Sharon Murphy.Rebecca Sapp/WireImage

Rebecca Sapp/WireImage

In her letter inTHR, Sharon wrote that Bertolotti was no longer part of Brittany’s life as early as 1 year old. “I raised Brittany alone,” she wrote. “We didn’t have much at first, but we always had each other.”

While Brittany was growing up, Bertolotti was imprisoned for 12 years on three criminal felony convictions and was tied to the Italian mafia, perThe Hollywood Reporter. Sharon wrote that Bertolotti occasionally saw Brittany when she was a teenager but hadn’t seen her in the last three years of her life nor met her husband.

Sharon moved with Brittany to Los Angeles to support her career

Brittany Murphy and mom Sharon at the Mann Village Theatre in Westwood, California.Jeffrey Mayer/WireImage

Jeffrey Mayer/WireImage

“It didn’t make sense to hire a chaperone to be with her when I’m her mom,” Sharon said, referring to the chaperone who worked with Brittany while she was shooting a commercial in Hollywood before their move.

“When I asked my mom to move to California, she sold everything and moved out here for me,” Brittany told the Associated Press in 2003. “I was really grateful to have grown up in an environment that was conducive to creating and didn’t stifle any of that. She always believed in me.”

Sharon was the last person to talk to Brittany before she died

Brittany Murphy and her mother Sharon Murphy.J. Vespa/WireImage

J. Vespa/WireImage

On the morning of Dec. 20, 2009, Brittany collapsed in the home she shared with Sharon and her husband. Monjack recalled in a 2010 interview withLarry Kingafter her death that her last words to her mom were, “Mom, I’m dying; I love you.”

The same month, Monjack and Sharon spoke to PEOPLE of Brittany’s death, with her husband recalling that the day started off normal until he heard Sharon “screaming” upon finding Brittany passing out in the bathroom.

Sharoncalled 911as Monjack performed chest compressions on Brittany in an attempt to revive her. “Brittany, please come back,” Sharon sobbed on the call.

“I would sleep on her clothes if I could,” Sharon told PEOPLE. “She was the other half of me.”

She continued living with Brittany’s husband after she died

Simon Monjack, husband of deceased actress Brittany Murphy and Sharon Murphy mother of Brittany Murphy, during a photo shoot on January 13, 2010 in Hollywood, California.Frazer Harrison/Getty

Frazer Harrison/Getty

“I loved Simon like a son, and he loved me like a mom,” she said in a statement to PEOPLE after Monjack’s May 2010 death. “I’ve lost a son-in-law and a daughter, and I’m devastated.”

She spoke out against Brittany’s father’s conspiracies surrounding her death

Sharon Murphy during a photo shoot on January 13, 2010 in Hollywood ; Father of late actress Brittany Murphy, Angelo Bertolotti.Frazer Harrison/Getty ; The Doctors

Frazer Harrison/Getty ; The Doctors

However, experts, including Dr. Scheinin in the 2021 documentaryWhat Happened, Brittany Murphy?,explained that the heavy metals weren’t in her bloodstream nor were they found in the roots of her hair, meaning they likely came from hair dyes and hairspray.

Berolotti went a step further and alleged Sharon had murdered Brittany and Monjack to inherit their estate. “My theory is that the mother did the job on both of them,” he told PEOPLE in 2013.

Sharon denied the accusation in her letter published inTHR, citing experts' explanations of the lab’s findings.

Sharon has lived out of the public eye for a decade

Sharon Murphy, mother of deceased actress Brittany Murphy, during a portrait shoot on January 13, 2010 in Hollywood, California.Frazer Harrison/Getty

In 2011, Sharonsold the Hollywood Hills homeat a massive loss for $2.7 million. It was torn down in 2013 and rebuilt, but it is unclear where the grieving mother moved to next.

After her 2014 letter, Sharon disappeared from the public eye.

In October 2021,Vanity Fairspoke with Cynthia Hill, the director ofWhat Happened, Brittany Murphy?, asking if she had been able to contact Sharon. She revealed that it was “very hard” to connect with her, and she had even hired a private investigator to track her down since no one could pinpoint where she was.

“We did locate her, and we hand-delivered a note to her,” she said. “She didn’t respond, but I did get confirmation that she had received it…I understand she has been mourning the loss of her daughter this whole time.”

Meanwhile, Bertolottidied in January 2019 at 92 years old.

source: people.com