Jennie Garth Calls Luke Perry an ‘Unrequited Love’

The feelings between Kelly and Dylan on “Beverly Hills, 90210” spilled over into real life for Jennie Garth.

Garth, who played Kelly Taylor on the popular ‘90s teen drama, revealed she had feelings for Luke Perry, who played the notoriously brooding Dylan McKay. She now opens up about their relationship in her memoir, “I Choose Me.”

“I loved him,” she said April 13 on TODAY with Jenna & Sheinelle. “I loved him, I guess in the way everybody loved him, but to my young self, it felt like very special and unique.”

Kelly and Dylan dated on and off during the show’s 10-season run from 1990 until 2000, with Perry leaving the series at different points during its later seasons. He died in 2019 after suffering a stroke.

Garth, 54, said their connection ran deep.

“I know we did have a wonderful relationship, and there was more to it than that, sort of like that unrequited love, you know, working together so closely all the time,” she said.

“The lines got blurred for me a lot as a young girl, and that made navigating my real love feelings in life very tricky. And it felt like love became something that I was a little bit afraid of.”

Garth angered some fans when she didn’t make a statement on social media mourning Perry after his death. In her first Instagram post after he died, she shared a photo of her three daughters with ex-husband Peter Facinelli in honor of International Women’s Day, prompting some people to question why she hadn’t made any comments about Perry and forcing Garth to comment about the matter.

“Hey everyone … I chose to post a pic of my girls today,” she wrote. “Because they are my life. Because today is a day to celebrate all women. It took a lot for me to want to celebrate anything. I thought about it and I know that’s the way my dear friend would have wanted it.”

Perry shared children Jack and Sophie with his ex-wife, Rachel “Minnie” Sharp. Garth wrote that his kids meant everything to him.

“His kids were his life,” Garth wrote. “And anyone who knew him knows that and knows he didn’t give a f— about social media.

“So please don’t assume or judge or make rude comments. That’s really uncool. Sincerely, Jennie.”

Garth would later open up more about Perry at an event in advance of the “Beverly Hills, 90210” reboot that aired in 2019.

“He’s been with us every step of the way,” she said.

“It’s very difficult, but I do know that he’s with us. I see little messages all the time from him and his energy’s here,” she added in a later interview before the show premiered.