Christina Applegate has been a beloved TV star for decades, from her breakout role in Married… with Children to her recent critically-acclaimed work in the Netflix series Dead to Me.
But recently, Applegate opened up about her recent diagnosis with MS… and says it means she will likely no longer be able to act on camera.
Applegate, 51, was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, a disease of the central nervous system that can have a number of symptoms including fatigue, muscle weakness and balance and coordination problems.
The actress revealed her diagnosis in 2021, while working on the final season of Dead to Me. Her health troubles made it difficult to continue filming.
In a recent interview with Vanity Fair, the Anchorman star opened up about her struggles with MS and said it has made her day-to-day life difficult by impacting her balance.
“With the disease of MS, it’s never a good day,” she told Vanity Fair. “Going down the stairs, carrying things—you can’t do that anymore. It f—ing sucks.”
While praising her Dead to Me co-star Linda Cardellini, Applegate hinted that the Netflix series marked her last on-camera performance, as MS has made the long hours of filming too difficult.
“I’m probably not going to work on-camera again,” Applegate said.
“I can’t even imagine going to set right now,” she added. “This is a progressive disease. I don’t know if I’m going to get worse. I can do voiceover stuff because I have to support my family and keep my brain working.”
In a previous interview with Variety, Applegate said that while there was “no way” she could commit the same hours she worked on Dead to Me, she was exploring options to continue acting in the future.
”It’s about finding what I’m capable of doing,” Applegate said. “I’m so new in this right now. It takes time to kind of figure out this disease, and figure out what’s bringing on symptoms. I’m just a newbie to all of this.”
“So I’m trying to figure it out — and I’m also in mourning for the person who I was. I have to find a place that’s as loving as my set was, where they won’t think I’m a diva by saying, ‘Hey, I can only work five hours.’”
Applegate also said that she was still hoping to work in the entertainment industry in some other capacity, like producing or developing: “I’ve got a lot of ideas in my mind, and I just need to get them executed,” she told Variety.
Earlier this year, Applegate attended the SAG Awards, and said it was likely her “last awards show as an actor.”
Applegate is also a breast cancer survivor. She was diagnosed in 2008, and announced she was cancer-free after undergoing a double mastectomy.
We love Christina Applegate and it’s sad to hear she won’t be able to act on-camera as much as she used to. We wish her the best as she continues to battle MS and hope she finds a way to continue working.
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