Tori Spelling has spent more than three decades in the spotlight, yet her story goes far beyond Donna Martin, the character that made her a household name on Beverly Hills, 90210. Born Victoria Davey Spelling on May 16, 1973, in Los Angeles, California, she grew up in one of Hollywood’s most recognizable families. Her father, Aaron Spelling, was a hugely successful television producer, while her mother, Candy Spelling, became known as an author and public figure.
Growing up around the entertainment industry gave Tori an unusually early introduction to television. She began acting as a child, but it was her casting as Donna Martin in 1990 that changed everything. Beverly Hills, 90210 became one of the defining television shows of the 1990s, and Spelling stayed with the original series for all 10 seasons.
Her career didn’t end when the show did. Over the years, she has worked as an actress, author, reality-TV personality, podcast host, and television personality. Her personal life has been equally visible, particularly her marriage to Dean McDermott, the birth of their five children, and the challenges that came with raising a family under constant public scrutiny.
Now, in 2026, Spelling is navigating a very different chapter. Her children are growing up, her marriage to McDermott has ended, and her career continues to evolve. Although Donna Martin remains an important part of her legacy, there’s considerably more to Tori Spelling’s story.
Quick Bio Information
| Biography Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Victoria Davey Spelling |
| Known As | Tori Spelling |
| Date Of Birth | May 16, 1973 |
| Birthplace | Los Angeles, California |
| Nationality | American |
| Profession | Actress, Author, Reality-TV Personality, Podcaster |
| Father | Aaron Spelling |
| Mother | Candy Spelling |
| Brother | Randy Spelling |
| Best-Known Role | Donna Martin |
| Breakthrough Series | Beverly Hills, 90210 |
| Original Series Run | 1990–2000 |
| First Husband | Charlie Shanian |
| Second Husband | Dean McDermott |
| Children With Dean | Five |
| Children | Liam, Stella, Hattie, Finn, Beau |
| Notable Book | sTori Telling |
| Second Memoir | Spelling It Like It Is |
| Podcast | misSPELLING |
| Notable Return To 90210 | BH90210 in 2019 |
Tori Spelling’s Early Life And Famous Hollywood Family
Tori Spelling was born into a family that already had deep roots in Hollywood. Her father, Aaron Spelling, was among television’s most successful producers, with an impressive list of hit series associated with his career. Her mother, Candy Spelling, later established herself as an author and public figure. Tori also has a younger brother, Randy Spelling.
The family lived in Los Angeles, and Tori grew up surrounded by the people, places, and productions that shaped the television business. Acting wasn’t an entirely unfamiliar world to her. As a child, she appeared in guest roles on television, including programs connected to her father’s production work.
That background would become an unavoidable part of the conversation surrounding her career. Aaron Spelling was the producer behind Beverly Hills, 90210, the series that eventually made his daughter famous. Tori has never been able to separate her professional story completely from her famous family, but her decades-long career has given her an identity of her own.
Where Did Tori Spelling Go To School?
Spelling attended Harvard-Westlake School in Los Angeles. She was already gaining practical experience in television while completing her education, having appeared in acting roles from a young age.
Her early exposure to professional sets meant that the entertainment industry wasn’t something she encountered for the first time when she became a teenager. She had already learned something about working in front of cameras and dealing with the demands of a professional production.
That experience proved useful when she landed the role that would define the first major phase of her career.
How Tori Spelling Started Her Acting Career
Tori Spelling began her acting career while she was still a child. She appeared in guest roles on television, gaining experience before making the leap to a regular role.
The biggest opportunity came in 1990, when she was cast as Donna Martin on Beverly Hills, 90210. She was just 17 when the series premiered, and the role placed her alongside a young ensemble that would soon become one of the most recognizable casts on television.
Her connection to Aaron Spelling naturally attracted attention to the casting decision. Still, the role developed considerably over the course of the series, giving Tori the opportunity to establish herself as a familiar face in her own right.
Tori Spelling As Donna Martin On Beverly Hills, 90210
For many viewers, Tori Spelling will always be associated with Donna Martin. The character became the defining role of her early career and remained with her throughout the entire original run of Beverly Hills, 90210.
The Fox drama premiered on October 4, 1990. It initially struggled to find a large audience, but its popularity grew significantly, and the show eventually became a cultural phenomenon. The series followed a group of teenagers and young adults living in Beverly Hills and tackled relationships, friendships, family problems, school, and other issues affecting young people.
Donna began as more of a supporting character, but her importance increased as the series progressed. Her relationships, friendships, and personal storylines eventually became an important part of the show’s long-running narrative.
Spelling remained on Beverly Hills, 90210 from its debut in 1990 until the series ended in 2000 after 10 seasons. The experience gave her a permanent place in 1990s television history alongside co-stars such as Jennie Garth, Jason Priestley, Luke Perry, Shannen Doherty, Brian Austin Green, Ian Ziering, and Gabrielle Carteris.
Nearly two decades later, Spelling returned to the world of 90210 for BH90210 in 2019. The revival took a deliberately unconventional approach, mixing fictional storylines with exaggerated versions of the actors’ real lives.
Tori Spelling’s Career After Beverly Hills, 90210
Leaving Beverly Hills, 90210 didn’t mean stepping away from entertainment. Spelling continued to take on acting roles in both television and film, gradually building a career that wasn’t dependent on a single character.
Her later credits include Scream 2, Scary Movie 2, So Notorious, and The Help. She also appeared in television movies and other projects, including Lifetime productions. In 2025, she appeared in the Lifetime thriller Abducted in the Everglades.
What stands out about Spelling’s career after 90210 is its variety. She didn’t limit herself to traditional acting. Instead, she moved between scripted television, films, reality programming, writing, and podcasting.
That willingness to try different formats has helped her remain visible even as the television industry has changed dramatically since the 1990s.
Tori Spelling’s Life As An Author
Writing became another way for Spelling to tell her story in her own words. Her first memoir, sTori Telling, was published in 2008 and offered a personal look at her childhood, career, family relationships, and experiences with fame.
She followed it with Spelling It Like It Is in 2014. Like her earlier memoir, the book explored personal experiences that had often been discussed in the media.
Her books are particularly significant when considering her family background and personal relationships because they provide her own perspective. Celebrity coverage can often become crowded with assumptions and outside interpretations, while memoir allows the subject to explain experiences directly.
For Spelling, writing also became another way to move beyond the image of Donna Martin and show audiences a more personal side of her life.
Why Tori Spelling Became A Reality-TV Star
Reality television gave audiences a completely different view of Tori Spelling. Instead of watching her portray a fictional character, viewers could follow parts of her life as a wife, mother, and working entertainer.
She appeared in several reality series, including Tori & Dean: Inn Love, Tori & Dean: Home Sweet Hollywood, and True Tori. These programs documented different periods of her relationship with Dean McDermott, their family life, pregnancies, business ventures, and personal difficulties.
Her children also became part of that television story while they were young. As celebrity culture shifted toward social media, the family gained another public platform through which everyday moments, celebrations, and milestones could be shared.
That visibility wasn’t always easy. Spelling has spoken about the difficulties of raising children while living under intense public attention, particularly when family problems become the subject of entertainment coverage.
Tori Spelling And Dean McDermott’s Relationship
Tori Spelling’s romantic life has been a significant part of her public biography. She married actor and playwright Charlie Shanian in 2004, but the marriage ended in divorce.
She later married Canadian actor Dean McDermott in 2006. Their relationship became highly visible, partly because their family life was documented through reality television.
Together, Spelling and McDermott welcomed five children: Liam Aaron, Stella Doreen, Hattie Margaret, Finn Davey, and Beau Dean. Their family grew over more than a decade, with Beau, the youngest, born in 2017.
After years together, however, the marriage entered a difficult period. McDermott announced their separation in June 2023, ending an 18-year marriage. Spelling filed for divorce in March 2024, and the divorce was resolved in 2025.
The end of the marriage marked a major turning point in Spelling’s personal life. It also shifted the public conversation from their years as a celebrity couple to their responsibilities as co-parents.
How Many Children Does Tori Spelling Have?
Tori Spelling has five children with Dean McDermott: Liam Aaron, Stella Doreen, Hattie Margaret, Finn Davey, and Beau Dean. Their ages now range from childhood to young adulthood.
McDermott also has an older son, Jack Montgomery McDermott, from his previous marriage to Mary Jo Eustace. As a result, the broader family has a blended structure that has included children from both of McDermott’s marriages.
Each of Tori and Dean’s five children has developed a distinct personality and set of interests, something Spelling has frequently highlighted when talking about her family.
Liam Aaron McDermott
Liam Aaron McDermott was born on March 13, 2007, in Los Angeles. He is Tori and Dean’s oldest child and appeared on the family’s reality television programs during his younger years.
As he grew older, Spelling spoke publicly about bullying Liam experienced at school. She said the situation affected him physically and emotionally, including causing headaches and stomachaches. Eventually, the family decided to move him to another school.
Liam has also had to navigate the unusual experience of growing up with a public childhood before entering adulthood. His story reflects one of the challenges faced by children whose parents have made their family lives part of a public career.
Stella Doreen McDermott
Stella Doreen McDermott was born on June 9, 2008. Her first name was inspired by Estella, the central character in Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations. Her middle name, Doreen, honors Dean’s late mother.
Stella has been described by her mother as creative and versatile. Her interests have included makeup, crafting, modeling, acting, and animals, and she appeared on the family’s reality programming when she was younger.
She also dealt with bullying during her school years. Spelling has discussed the emotional impact of that experience and the family’s decision to change schools.
In 2023, Spelling publicly discussed Stella’s hospitalization and diagnosis of hemiplegic migraine. Because this concerns a young person’s health, it’s important to distinguish between information publicly shared by the family and details that haven’t been independently established.
Hattie Margaret McDermott
Hattie Margaret McDermott was born on October 10, 2011. She is Tori and Dean’s second daughter.
Spelling has described Hattie as artistic, strong-willed, and free-spirited. She has also spoken about Hattie’s interest in horror and darker, mystical themes, as well as her creative side.
Hattie and her older sister Stella have been described as particularly close. Their relationship has remained one of the recurring themes in Spelling’s family updates, offering a glimpse into the bond between the sisters as they’ve grown older.
Finn Davey McDermott
Finn Davey McDermott was born on August 30, 2012, after what was a difficult pregnancy for Spelling. She experienced placenta previa and spent time hospitalized and on bed rest.
Finn was delivered by C-section at 37 weeks. Following the birth, Spelling experienced complications that required emergency surgery.
The experience had a lasting emotional impact on her. She later described becoming especially protective of Finn because of everything surrounding his pregnancy and birth.
Spelling has also portrayed Finn as energetic, playful, and full of personality. His place in the family has remained a recurring part of her stories about motherhood.
Beau Dean McDermott
Beau Dean McDermott was born on March 2, 2017, making him the youngest of Tori and Dean’s five children.
Spelling described her pregnancy with Beau as smoother than her pregnancy with Finn. His arrival also represented a particularly hopeful period for the family.
Beau has appeared in family updates involving animals, sports, and golf. Dean has highlighted his son’s interest in golf, giving audiences occasional glimpses of their relationship and father-son activities.
As the youngest child, Beau has also grown up in a different media environment from his older siblings, with social media playing a much larger role than it did when Liam and Stella were small.
Who Is Jack McDermott?
Jack Montgomery McDermott is Dean McDermott’s son from his previous marriage to Mary Jo Eustace. Born in 1998, he is older than Tori and Dean’s five children.
Tori met Jack when he was young and has described developing a close relationship with him. She has spoken about spending time together during his childhood and later reconnecting after a period of distance during his teenage years.
Jack’s place in the family is an important part of understanding the McDermott household. Tori’s family life has always involved blended-family relationships rather than simply the seven-person household formed by her marriage to Dean and their five children.
Public disagreements involving Dean, Eustace, and Jack have also illustrated how complicated family relationships can become when personal matters are discussed publicly.
Tori Spelling’s Approach To Motherhood
Motherhood has become one of the defining parts of Tori Spelling’s life. Her children have grown up alongside her career, and she has frequently celebrated their birthdays, interests, accomplishments, and individual personalities.
At the same time, she hasn’t portrayed parenting as effortless. Her experiences have included a medically complicated pregnancy, concerns about school bullying, a publicly discussed health issue involving Stella, and the challenges of raising children while living under intense scrutiny.
The result is a more complicated picture of celebrity motherhood than the polished family snapshots often seen online. Spelling has experienced the ordinary joys of parenting alongside circumstances that have been anything but ordinary.
With Liam now an adult and the younger children continuing to grow, her role as a mother is changing as well. She’s no longer parenting five small children at once, but she’s still navigating the different needs and stages of a large family.
The Challenges Of Raising A Family In The Public Eye
Few aspects of Tori Spelling’s life have been completely private. Her children appeared on television when they were young, while social media later made it easier for the family to share personal moments with a broad audience.
That visibility brought both opportunities and challenges. Spelling has discussed bullying involving Liam and Stella, while her pregnancy with Finn became a major personal and medical challenge. Her separation from McDermott added another highly public transition to an already closely watched family life.
For that reason, a responsible account of Tori Spelling’s family should distinguish between documented events, statements made by the family, and speculation from outside sources. The distinction matters particularly when discussing children and sensitive personal subjects.
The family’s experience also reflects a broader change in celebrity culture. What once appeared only in television programs or tabloid coverage can now spread instantly through social media, making privacy much harder to protect.
Tori Spelling’s Life Beyond 90210
It would be easy to reduce Tori Spelling’s career to Donna Martin, but doing so would overlook much of the work she has done since 2000.
She moved into memoir writing, reality television, television movies, film, and podcasting. Her return to the 90210 universe in BH90210 showed that she was comfortable revisiting the role that established her career while also approaching it from a different perspective.
In April 2024, she launched misSPELLING, a personal podcast that gave her a direct platform for discussing her life and experiences.
She also co-hosted 90210MG with Jennie Garth, allowing the two former co-stars to revisit the original series and discuss memories from their years on the show. Spelling left the podcast in 2026.
Her career path reflects the changing nature of entertainment. She started in an era dominated by network television and has continued working through the rise of reality TV, digital media, social platforms, and podcasts.
What Is Tori Spelling Doing Now?
As of 2026, Tori Spelling is in a new phase of both her personal and professional life.
Her misSPELLING podcast remains an important part of her work, giving her a space to communicate directly with audiences. She also continues to be associated with the 90210 legacy through her past work, cast relationships, and ongoing interest in the original series.
Her family life has changed considerably following her divorce from Dean McDermott. The couple now share responsibility for raising their five children, who are at very different stages of their lives.
Liam is an adult, while Stella, Hattie, Finn, and Beau are continuing through their teenage and childhood years. Spelling has continued sharing selected family moments publicly, including milestones and celebrations.
Rather than trying to recreate the career she had in the 1990s, she has built a broader identity around acting, personal storytelling, motherhood, and modern media.
Tori Spelling’s Lasting Place In Pop Culture
Tori Spelling occupies a distinctive place in television history. She became famous as a teenager on a series that helped define the 1990s, then remained in the public conversation long after the show ended.
Donna Martin is undoubtedly the role most people associate with her, but her career has never stayed confined to that character. She has worked in film and television, published memoirs, appeared in reality programming, returned to 90210, and embraced podcasting.
Her family life has also shaped the way audiences understand her. For years, viewers watched her transition from a young actress into a wife and mother of five. Later, they saw her deal publicly with family difficulties and the end of her marriage.
That long timeline is what makes her story particularly interesting. Spelling has remained relevant not because she has simply repeated the success of her first major role, but because she has continued to reinvent how she presents herself to audiences.
Final Thoughts
Tori Spelling’s story extends well beyond Beverly Hills, 90210. Donna Martin gave her a lasting place in television history, but the decades that followed brought an increasingly varied career in acting, writing, reality television, podcasting, and personal storytelling.
Her family has been just as important to that journey. Raising five children, navigating the pressures of public motherhood, dealing with difficult family circumstances, and eventually ending an 18-year marriage have all shaped the person audiences know today.
In 2026, Spelling remains connected to Hollywood, but she’s no longer simply the young actress who played Donna Martin or the daughter of legendary producer Aaron Spelling. She’s built a much broader public identity of her own.
Her career demonstrates how a performer can evolve alongside the entertainment industry. From network television in the 1990s to podcasts and digital media today, Tori Spelling has continued finding new ways to tell her story.
FAQs About Tori Spelling
Who Is Tori Spelling?
Tori Spelling is an American actress, author, reality-TV personality, and podcast host. She became famous for playing Donna Martin on Beverly Hills, 90210, appearing throughout the show’s original 10-season run.
When Was Tori Spelling Born?
Tori Spelling was born Victoria Davey Spelling on May 16, 1973, in Los Angeles, California. She is the daughter of television producer Aaron Spelling and author Candy Spelling.
What Is Tori Spelling Best Known For?
She’s best known for playing Donna Martin on Beverly Hills, 90210. The Fox drama premiered in 1990 and became one of the defining teen television series of the 1990s.
How Many Children Does Tori Spelling Have?
Tori Spelling has five children with Dean McDermott: Liam, Stella, Hattie, Finn, and Beau. Dean also has an older son, Jack, from his previous marriage to Mary Jo Eustace.
Who Was Tori Spelling Married To?
Tori Spelling was first married to actor and playwright Charlie Shanian in 2004. She later married Dean McDermott in 2006. They separated in 2023, and their divorce was resolved in 2025.
What Books Has Tori Spelling Written?
Two of Tori Spelling’s best-known memoirs are sTori Telling, published in 2008, and Spelling It Like It Is, published in 2014. Both books explore aspects of her family background, career, relationships, and experiences with fame.
Is Tori Spelling Still Connected To 90210?
Yes. Spelling returned as Donna Martin in the 2019 revival BH90210. She later co-hosted the 90210MG rewatch podcast with Jennie Garth before leaving the project in 2026. Her connection to the franchise remains an important part of her career.
What Is Tori Spelling Doing Now?
In 2026, Tori Spelling remains active in entertainment and personal media. She hosts the misSPELLING podcast, continues to be associated with the 90210 franchise, and is focused on raising and supporting her five children following her divorce from Dean McDermott.
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