Jennie Garth Says She Receives Messages from Luke Perry Amid Moments of Doubt (Exclusive)

Over 25 years ago, Jennie Garth uttered three, now-iconic words on Beverly Hills, 90210 : "I choose me." The empowering statement would eventually set the stage for her brand, ME by Jennie Garth .

"The whole brand was truly inspired by me just sort of being at a stalled place in my life and then sort of having the time to listen, to kind of figure out what was next for me," the 90210 alum, 52, told Parade in an exclusive interview.

"This calling to sort of look back in order to move forward kept coming through for me, and I realized that the statement that Kelly Taylor said in 1995 was actually much more important than I realized. I hear a lot of feedback from OG fans and a lot of them really responded to the 'I choose me' moment for Kelly Taylor."

Garth's brand encompasses an iHeart podcast, titled I Choose Me , and a clothing line. Her new “Me” by Jennie Garth collection—a collaboration with QVC —launched on July 29.

"My daughter and I are designing monthly collections," Garth said. "Each drop, each collection is inspired by that general thinking of choosing yourself, choosing to make how you look, how you feel in your clothes, choosing to make that a priority. We're just trying to make it a little simpler by providing a great collection of clothes that you can just open your closet and look at and be like 'Yes, yes, I'm gonna wear that today. I'm gonna feel so good in it and I'm gonna look good."

The collection includes a sustainable jacket named after Luke Perry ’s Beverly Hills, 90210 character, Dylan McKay. Garth credits her late co-star Perry—whodied in 2019—with encouraging her to stay the course.

Continue reading to find out what Jennie Garth had to say about receiving messages from Luke Perry, plus whether she'd want to revisit Kelly Taylor again and her mission to dismantle the stigma around aging.

This collection is going to include a "Dylan" jacket, which is said to be reminiscent of Luke Perry's 90210 character... Is this piece a tribute to him? How did [it] come about?

The clothing line has nothing to do with 90210. It's just me and it's my daughter and what we want to be doing right now and moving forward. The woo woo part is that I kept getting very clear messages from Luke and from his energy. I really believe in all that stuff... He would be in my dreams and he would just be standing there and he would be smiling and he would give me the vibe, the energy, the thought, that "Keep going. You're doing great. Keep doing what you're doing." I have goosebumps every time I talk about this. How can you not listen to somebody when they come through and give you messages and so the jacket, it's called the Dylan denim jacket. It's named after him and that's why.

What's your favorite memory that you have with Luke?

Oh, God. There's no possible way I could pick one. We loved to laugh together and to poke, push each other's buttons [laughs] just for the fun of it. And those were my favorite moments when we are just sort of lovingly harassing one another.

How often do you rewatch 90210 ?

Every week! I do a rewatch podcast called 90210MG . We are in our sixth season. We're going through from the very first episode all the way to the very last episode. I had never watched the show ever. I never knew what was happening in the other people's storylines because I was just filming mine. I would work all day and then I'd go home, come back and do it again. I never even like looked at people's pages in the scripts because that's how busy we were. And so watching it back has been amazing.

As you're watching, it must be like a flood of memories...

I want more of those flooding memories. But a lot of times I don't. I watch it and look at that young Jennie and the young Tori [ Spelling ] and the young Jason [ Priestley ] and the young Shannen [Doherty]. I'm able to see all those people from such a different perspective now as an adult...What we all created together, I have so much more pride for it and just love for everyone involved.

Why do you think the show became such a cultural phenomenon?

I know now like you as a viewer, we care about those characters. We started from high school and we watch them grow up and we watch their ups and their downs and their smart choices and their not so smart choices, and you really get invested. So I know that it's the characters, and honestly, the actors that portrayed them. You get sucked in and you want to see what's happening with them. And you want to see Beverly Hills, and you want to see that life. Because there was no internet then. You couldn't just Google like "What does Beverly Hills look like?" It was the show. That's when you got to see it and so that, just that experience alone is why this show was successful.

Related: Clap, Clap! All About 90210 Star Jennie Garth's Kids

Are your kids fans of [ 90210 ] ?

They've all watched it and definitely, they loved it. They have an appreciation for it because they know that none of us would be here if it hadn't been for that show. Like I wouldn't have taken the path that I took, met the people that I met, met their dad, had babies. It all happened like a puzzle, so they're really appreciative of that.

Was there one particular episode or scene that you were excited or nervous for them to see when they first watched the show?

When we watch it back weekly, like they'll be coming in and out of the room wherever I'm watching it and whenever there's a kissing scene I'm literally like, "Oh my god—I don't feel good watching. This is weird." And they're like, "Ew, gross, yuck!" [Laughs]

You kind of touched on this, but how do you think playing Kelly and the show impacted your career?

I mean in every possible, imaginable way. I never, never, never thought that that one choice would lead me to where I'm sitting right now, and have such a profound impact on my future. I made that choice to do that show when I was 16 years old, 17 years old, and at 52, it's still the cornerstone, it's still the base, the backbone of what I'm doing and how I'm living my life and the opportunities that come to me.

When you reflect on your time on 90210 , is there anything you would have done differently with your character Kelly, or that you would have liked to have seen?

It's hard because they really did so many crazy things with her. Like so much drama, so I don't think I would change anything. I might have made it a little more clear or had a little more time pass before she hooked up with Dylan, her best friend's ex-boyfriend. I probably would have handled that a little differently [laughs]. But I didn't have much choice in it at that time.

If there were to be another revival, what kind of direction would you like to see it take?

We had such a great time doing BH90210 , the sort of, you know, woke, inside version of it, and we all loved that concept of playing ourselves, playing the characters trying to make a remake. I think now having been able to do that, it would be fun to go back and play our characters. But I don't know if that'll ever happen. Like a real remake. Like where are they now kind of a remake.

Have there been any discussions of bringing these characters back to the small screen?

There are always talks about that. In some world, in some office, that's always a discussion, but having it come together and get into the right ears and on the right desks, that's another story.

Related: 90210 's Jennie Garth Shares Her Heart Health Journey—'You Have to Be Brave When It Comes to Your Health'

Would you be open to playing Kelly again one day down the road?

I would. When my producing partner at the time, Tori Spelling, and I created BH90210 that was in 2018, I think, if you'd asked me that question then, I would have said "No, I don't have any interest in playing Kelly. Let's do it a different way." And so that's how that sort of all happened. But now, having rewatched the show and loving it so much, yeah, I would do it.

The [ Beverly Hills, 90210 ] cast is going to be reuniting in September at 90s Con in Florida . What's it like when you guys all get back together in the same room?

I love seeing everyone. I love being around them. It's like being home in a weird, comfortable, yet uncomfortable way [laughs]. When you go back with people that you grew up with for 10 years in those super-formative years, it's probably the same as going back to your college or your high school group of friends. You don't see how they've grown or they've matured or how their lives have progressed because you automatically just go back to your time with them in that moment in those 10 years.

You've all been on different journeys, but are you guys all supportive of each other?

Absolutely. There's not one of us that wouldn't support the other one, and want the best for each other and encourage each other. [At] the end of the day, we're family.

You're on a mission to dismantle the stigma around aging and second acts. What led you to become an advocate for this?

Turning 50 is a big deal. It's a big deal for any woman and as you progress into your 50s, so much happens psychologically and physically. You become like a new person and you have a different perspective on things. So that happened for me naturally.

And then my involvement, my partnerships with QVC, everything sort of came together in this beautiful way. They've actually developed this thing called the Age of Possibility , the Q50, the Quintessential 50. It's a group of women who are over 50 who have things to say and things to offer and advice and all these wonderful messages. So, being in a group of people like Queen Latifah , Patti LaBelle , Kathie Lee [ Gifford ], Naomi Watts . I could go on and on. We came together in Vegas recently and it was just so empowering and inspiring to be around these women and hear from them and be encouraged by them. I've never experienced anything like it.

Entering a new decade can be scary, or, for some, exciting... What was your mindset entering your 50s?

Like every big birthday, you're like, "Whoa, what's happening with my life?" For me, 50 was when I was going through that, "What am I here for? What's my purpose?" I thought the day I turned 50, I was gonna get all these messages and like this aha moment of what I was supposed to do. And it didn't come. and I kind of panicked. Once I started sort of like getting quiet and listening to myself, everything started to fall into place, like the messages, the confidence to fulfill those messages and to have that freedom of like "Hey, just because you're 50, just because you're getting older in Hollywood, who cares? Keep doing what you want to do and do it with gusto. Do it the best you can and let's see what happens."

How do you think Hollywood can help dismantle the stigma?

I don't even know that it's necessarily Hollywood anymore. I think it's just society—the world's sort of perspective on women as they age. I think it's the messaging that marketing puts out there about women that are aging... I heard Diane von Furstenberg, the designer, I heard an interview with her recently and she said "Don't ask me how old I am. Ask me how many years I've lived." The more and more years that you live, the more you have to offer. The more you've experienced, the more wisdom you've gained, hopefully. And I think that that is the messaging that needs to change just on a societal level. And also, respect. Like hello, I respect my elders. I look at people that are older than me and I want to suck up all their knowledge like a sponge.

How would you describe this phase of your life?

I would describe it as literally the age of possibility. I think that is so corny... There's nothing else that describes it because even in meetings with QVC, I'm already developing for 2025, the sky's the limit. Literally the sky's the limit. Whatever you want to do, if you think it, you can do it.

And what's something you haven't done yet that you would love to do?

I'm really excited to expand my brand to other areas that interest me other than fashion. I love design. I love home décor. I love architecture. I love animals. Like I can't even tell you. Like I said, the sky's the limit.

Editor's note: This interview was conducted prior to the passing of Jennie Garth's Beverly Hills, 90210 co-star Shannen Doherty .

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

Next, Beverly Hills, 90210: Where Are They Now ?