Jason Priestley Recalls 'Sad' Call from Jennie Garth after “90210” Costar Luke Perry’s Stroke: 'He Was a Bright Light'

Jason Priestley remembers hearing the news of Luke Perry’s massive stroke like it was yesterday.

Priestley, 55, who was both Perry’s co-star and longtime friend, reflects in the new CW documentary I am Luke Perry that a fellow Beverly Hills, 90210  alumnus delivered the devastating news. “The morning that Luke had his stroke, I was at home. I was in my kitchen, and my phone rang and it was Jennie [Garth],” Priestley recalls. “Jennie told me that Luke had had a stroke and they were — and he was on his way to the hospital.”

Though he was “shocked” and “stunned,” Priestley says he remained hopeful, drawing on his own experiences. “I’m an eternal optimist,” he says. “I thought, ‘Yeah, he’s had a stroke. My dad had a stroke a few years ago. He’ll be okay.’ ”

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While waiting for updates, Priestley and his former 90210 co-stars leaned on one another for support. “At that point in time, I was talking to Jennie, I was talking to Ian [Ziering], I was talking to Brian [Austin Green], I was talking to Gabby [Carteris], I was talking to everybody.

But tragically, one week after the stroke, Perry died on Mar. 4, 2019, at age 52. “He passed away and it was a shock,” Priestley says, getting emotional in the documentary. “It was sad because he was a bright light.”

Related: Luke Perry: Read PEOPLE's Cover Story About the 'Great Talent' 5 Years After His Shocking Death

Garth, 52, wasn’t the only 90210 star to break the news of Perry’s stroke. “I think Brian Austin Green texted me,” Dean Winters, Perry’s Oz costar, recalls of how he heard the news. “I don’t think it had hit the press yet. Yeah that f---ing sucked. F---ing terrible.”

Unlike Priestley, Winters, 60, says he wasn’t optimistic after hearing the news. “I knew someone who passed away from a stroke before that, and so I didn’t have a whole lot of faith. I wanted to, you know?,” the actor says.

He adds while wiping tears, “I don’t think anyone used the word ‘brother’ with me the way that he did. We had really great conversations and almost nothing to do with the business. So I appreciated that about him. I just miss having him as a friend. I hope I see him again sometime.”

In the final moments of the documentary, old footage of Perry shows how he envisioned his life at the time of his death. “When my time is up, I don’t wanna look back and see that I didn't do anything, you know? And by that, I mean I didn’t have an effect on anything else,” the Riverdale star said.

Related: Shannen Doherty Paid Tribute to Luke Perry with Emotional Riverdale Cameo: 'He Saved My Life'

He added, “I want to happen to my life, I don’t want my life to happen to me.”

I am Luke Perry is now streaming on the CW website.

Read the original article on People