20 YEARS OF CHARMED The magic, the women, and where they are now
We look back at the magic, the women and where they are now ANNIVERSARY
It’s hard to believe it has been two decades since the Halliwell sisters left us spellbound from the first episode of the fantasy drama Charmed, which aired in October 1998 to a record-breaking audience of 7.7 million viewers. The show, which followed the lives of three beautiful witches – Prue (Shannen Doherty), Piper (Holly Marie Combs) and Phoebe (Alyssa Milano) – as they protected the innocent and destroyed evil instantly became a cult hit with eager fans tuning in every week as the kick-ass siblings used their magical powers to take on deadly demons and warlocks.
Though it wasn’t just the sisters’ ability to orbit, hover, shield and heal that had viewers enthralled for nine spellbinding seasons, but their tumultuous social, work and love lives, too. As far as onscreen love stories go, who could forget the forbidden romance between Piper and handyman and secret white lighter Leo Wyatt, played by Brian Krause?
Meanwhile, the most emotional episode came in Season 3 in 2001, when Doherty’s character Prue was killed by the demon Shax. Doherty’s exit made way for the arrival of long-lost half-sister Paige Matthews, played by Rose Mcgowan. In Mcgowan’s memoir Brave she recounts how she felt stepping into the role. “I had been told that many shows don’t survive a major cast change,” writes Mcgowan, who is one of the leading figures in the #Metoo movement. “So I made myself look super non-threatening. I gained weight – about 10 pounds [4.5kg] – for the role.”
The show’s final episode, “Forever Charmed”, aired in May, 2006. Since then, its stars have continued to enjoy success both on and off camera. While Milano went on to appear in movies including Hall Pass and New Year’s Eve, she’s also a proud mum of two and a longtime activist for charities such as UNICEF and PETA.
Doherty, who played the eldest of the three sisters and had also starred in Beverly Hills, 90210, went on to star in films but since 2015 has been battling breast cancer – she recently announced she is in remission. Combs went on to star in Pretty Little Liars from 2010 to 2017.
Fans went into meltdown after learning a Charmed reboot was in the works and is set to be released on Oct. 14 in the US. But the original cast have mixed opinions. “Let me say first that I appreciate the jobs and opportunities the Charmed reboot has created,” Combs wrote on Twitter. “But I will never understand what is fierce, funny, or feminist in creating a show that basically says the original actresses are too old to do a job they did 12 years ago.”
“I gained about 4.5kg for the role” — Rose Mcgowan