Death of N.J. Actress Brittany Murphy to be Subject of TV Special

Brittany Murphy, a New Jersey actress, passed away unexpectedly in late December of 2020. According to NJ.com, after flu-like symptoms, Murphy, 23, passed out in her bathroom and into her mother’s arms. Her cause of death has unexpected and there has been a lot of speculation about what caused her death. “Brittany Murphy: An ID Mystery,” a TV special from Investigation Discovery, will revisit the actress’s death.

Her death was officially determined to be caused by pneumonia, anemia from severe iron deficiency and multiple drug intoxications from both over-the-counter and prescription drugs. Her husband died at the same home just five months after Murphy’s and his cause of death was similar: pneumonia and anemia.

According to NJ.com, The ID Channel says that the special will cast “doubt on the conclusion that she died of natural causes and reveals bizarre allegations against other family members.”

There was speculation that their deaths were caused by mold, but following investigation of the house, it was reported there was no mold.

“It is unusual to have two people die of similar circumstances with pneumonia," Ed Winter, Los Angeles County assistant chief coroner said. “We’ve been looking at it and saying, ‘Something isn’t right.’ I’m not saying you can’t get pneumonia from mold, but we did all the tests on it — mold did not come up in the toxicology reports."

The special can now be watched for free on ID’s website. It will feature an exclusive interview from Angelo Bertolotti, Brittany's father, that was recorded back in 2019 before he died.

Murphy is best known for her roles in “Clueless,” “8 Mile” and TV’s “King of the Hill.”