‘The Brittany Murphy Story’: Lifetime Movie ‘Exposes’ Relationship With Simon Monjack

Think you know Brittany Murphy? Well, Lifetime wants you to think again. Almost five years after her untimely death at the age of 32, the network has released “The Brittany Murphy Story” -- the “true story of how Brittany’s Hollywood dream turned into a nightmare.”

Lifetime’s new flick followed Murphy from her rise to fame in the mid-1990s to her death Dec. 20, 2009. However, the main focus throughout “The Brittany Murphy Story” was on her relationships with her mother, Sharon Murphy, and her husband, Simon Monjack. Check out what the Lifetime movie “exposed”:

-- “The Brittany Murphy Story” kicked off with Monjack (Eric Petersen) after the death of his wife in December 2009. Paparazzi and reporters badgered Monjack about what killed her -- and Monjack replied, “You did. You all killed her.”

-- Murphy (Amanda Fuller) met Monjack at a party for a Janis Joplin biopic in which she was supposed to star. Monjack was there as a photographer and approached Murphy as a fan of her work. However, he supposedly talked to her while photographing the “Clueless” premiere.

-- In her youth, Murphy was comfortable around the paparazzi. Monjack, who was a member of the paparazzi at the time, warned her not to trust them and that she didn’t need to remake herself as a blonde.

-- Shortly after breaking up with Ashton Kutcher (Adam Hagenbuch) in 2003, Murphy collapsed due to chronic anemia and hypoglycemia. The paparazzi turned on her, and reported she was on drugs. Monjack rescued her from the cameras when she was released from the hospital.

-- Murphy’s mother, Sharon Murphy (Sherilyn Fenn), was diagnosed with breast cancer. She beat it once. However, it returned in 2004. The actress dedicated all her time to her mother, but kept her illness out of the spotlight. Murphy’s career tanked and rumors about her personal life became a hot topic. She was dropped by her agents after a “blind item” and struggled with her career until 2007 when Monjack, then an executive producer and writer in Hollywood, approached her about a starring role in his new movie.

-- Murphy and Monjack surprised her mother with their engagement, something she didn’t initially condone. Worried about her daughter’s vulnerability and fragility, Sharon Murphy wanted to make sure Monjack wasn’t taking advantage of the actress. Monjack assured her that despite his lack of Hollywood looks he was devoted to Brittany and Sharon -- since they were a “package deal.”

-- Monjack said he wanted to help Murphy reboot her career, but others thought he was using her. In the Lifetime movie, a woman claimed Monjack had a shady history that involved lawsuits, unpaid bills and more. The woman begged the actress to look into Monjack’s past -- and to get her engagement ring appraised because she was certain it was cubic zirconia.

-- Murphy’s husband was arrested by American immigration officials after it was discovered the British native was living in the U.S. under an expired visa. It was then that Brittany and Sharon Murphy discovered that Monjack had other allegations against him, including those centered on credit-card fraud and debt of more than $1 million.

-- Despite the allegations, Brittany Murphy didn’t care about Monjack’s shady past. She married him in 2007, and the Lifetime movie revealed he later admitted to the “dirty, terrible, horrible things.”

-- By 2009, Murphy was falling apart -- believing that reporters were stalking her in her home and relying on her husband to dress her.

-- Ex-boyfriend and former co-star Kutcher allegedly approached Murphy about starring in a new television show he was producing. Monjack immediately turned him down, saying they were rebooting her feature career and that it wasn’t time for her to go back to TV.

-- Monjack got Murphy a role in a horror flick: “The Caller.” The actress didn’t enjoy horror films and struggled on set, allegedly falling asleep and forgetting lines. The director accused Monjack of being drunk and kicked him off the set. Murphy refused to stay on board if Monjack couldn’t accompany her, so she was fired.

-- After returning from Puerto Rico for “The Caller,” both Monjack and Murphy became ill. Monjack suffered a minor heart attack, and Murphy developed a nasty cold. The actress refused to go to the hospital, fearing the tabloids would call her a junkie. She collapsed Dec. 20, 2009. Monjack and Sharon Murphy tried to revive her by dragging her into the shower, but it was too late. Murphy’s cause of death was later revealed to be anemia, pneumonia and “combined drug intoxication” (with no illegal drugs in the mix).

What did you think of Lifetime’s “The Brittany Murphy Story”? Tweet your thoughts to @AmandaTVScoop.