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Christina Applegate Says She Likely Had MS for 7 Years Before Diagnosis
Christina Applegate is getting candid astir her conflict with multiple sclerosis.
The Dead to Me star, who was diagnosed with the autoimmune illness successful 2021, didn't mince words erstwhile precocious speaking astir her regular struggles. Refusing to minimize her condition, Applegate bluntly enactment it connected the March 25 occurrence of Armchair Expert, "This is the worst happening that's happened to maine successful my full life."
In fact, the 52-year-old said she's perpetually successful symptom owed to the disorder. "I person 30 lesions connected my brain," she shared. "My biggest 1 is down my close eye, truthful my close oculus hurts a lot."
Applegate besides noted that sometimes "my hand starts to spell weird and past I'll get a seizure-y feeling sometimes successful my brain."
"It sucks," the Samantha Who? histrion continued. "I hatred it truthful much. I'm truthful huffy astir it."
And there's a crushed wherefore she is truthful outspoken astir her MS journey. Looking backmost astatine her 2008 bosom cancer diagnosis, Applegate admitted to "lying my a-- off" about the challenges she faced astatine the time.
"Everything I was saying was a freaking lie," she told co-hosts Dax Shepard and Monica Padman. "It was maine trying to person myself of something, and I deliberation that did nary work to anyone."
And though the Married... with Children alum is grateful that her communicative helped raised "millions of dollars" for bosom crab prevention, she confessed that she was truly "crying each night" astatine location during her treatments.
"I privation that I had said that," Applegate, who underwent a treble mastectomy after her crab diagnosis, noted. "I didn't similar my boobies. I inactive don't similar my boobies. It's horrible."
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However, Applegate is besides determined to instrumentality her wellness struggles successful stride. That's wherefore she couldn't assistance but to crack a fewer self-deprecating jokes during her 2023 Emmys appearance in January.
"I marque these jokes due to the fact that if I don't, I'll suffocate," she explained. "I'm not acceptable for the healing yet."
Look backmost astatine Applegate done the years by revisiting her astir memorable roles below:
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Married …With Children
Applegate played Kelly Bundy, the girl of Al and Peggy Bundy (portrayed by Ed O'Neill and Katey Sagal) and sister to Bud Bundy (David Faustino), connected Married...With Children from 1987 to 1997. But the actress, who was just 15 years aged erstwhile she was approached for the role, astir didn't instrumentality it.
"I did not privation to bash the show," she recalled on The Rich Eisen Show in 2017. "At that time, I was connected a play series, and I thought it was disgusting. I wouldn't adjacent audition for it. They went up and changeable a aviator with 2 different kids. For immoderate reason, the chemistry conscionable didn't work, and they came backmost to maine and said, 'Would you delight travel in?' And I was like, 'No.' They sent maine the pilot, and my ma and I did not privation to similar it. And we turned it on, and we were stifling laughing. So, I thought, 'I'll spell in.' But I'd ne'er done drama before."
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Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead
However, Applegate ended up doing a batch much comedy. She starred successful the 1991 movie Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead, successful which her teenage quality Swell starts moving the household for her and her siblings aft their ma heads disconnected connected a travel to Australia and—as the rubric suggests—the hired babysitter passes away.
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Jesse
After Married...With Children ended, Applegate continued her tv reign with shows like Jesse, which ran from 1998 to 2000. Applegate received her archetypal Golden Globes information successful 1999 for her crook arsenic rubric character, azygous ma Jesse Warner, who works astatine her dad's German bar.
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The Sweetest Thing
The sweetest happening about this movie mightiness beryllium the real-life relationship that developed betwixt Applegate, Cameron Diaz and Selma Blair.
"I'm inactive truthful close, obviously, with Christina Applegate," Blair told Entertainment Tonight successful 2021. "Cameron ever is Cameron Diaz amazement."
In the 2002, R-rated movie, Diaz's quality Christina—whose BFFs are Applegate's Courtney and Blair's Jane—has nary involvement successful entering a committed narration until she runs into a antheral named Peter (Thomas Jane) astatine a bar. She and Courtney past determine to instrumentality a roadworthy travel to a wedding where Peter volition beryllium to spot if he's the one.
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Friends
There was besides the 1 wherever she played Amy Green, the sister of Jennifer Aniston's quality Rachel Green, connected Friends. While Applegate lone appeared successful 2 episodes of the sitcom successful 2002 and 2003, she surely near her mark. She not lone picked up her archetypal Emmy grant for her impermanent relation connected the drama series, but she besides received nominations for some appearances.
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Anchorman
Now this movie truly made news.
In the 2004 comedy Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, Applegate plays Veronica Corningstone, a broadcast writer who works with anchor Ron Burgundy (Will Ferrell) astatine a San Diego quality presumption successful the 1970s. They signifier a romanticist relationship. But after Veronica is promoted to co-anchor, Ron isn't supportive, starring the 2 to signifier a fierce rivalry.
The movie—which besides stars Paul Rudd, Steve Carell and David Koechner—was specified a deed that it led to a 2013 sequel Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues, which Applegate besides starred in.
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Samantha Who?
Who wasn't talking astir Samantha Who? erstwhile the amusement premiered successful 2007?
Applegate played the rubric character, who suffers amnesia aft being progressive successful a car accident. As she begins to portion her beingness backmost together, Samantha realizes she wasn't a bully idiosyncratic and wants to marque amended choices.
The drama bid ran for 2 seasons—ending successful 2009—with Applegate receiving back-to-back Emmy and Golden Globe nominations for her pb performance.
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Going the Distance
After gathering and falling hard and accelerated for each other, Erin (Drew Barrymore) from California and Garrett (Justin Long) from New York determine to participate a long-distance relationship. The 2010 movie follows the mates arsenic they navigate the challenges of their caller romance, their careers and the opinions of Erin's protective sister Corinne (Applegate) and Garrett's friends Box (Jason Sudeikis) and Dan (Charlie Day).
And it looks similar Applegate's relationship with Barrymore genuinely went the distance.
"I cognize who she is astatine the halfway of who she is for immoderate weird reason, and I deliberation she looks astatine maine and is the aforesaid way," she told Tribute Movies successful 2010. "There's this feeling of knowing that the 2 of america person of who we truly are deep, deep, heavy down wherever cipher other has seen. And I deliberation that gave america a large chemistry due to the fact that it was conscionable casual aft that. I felt wholly protective of her, she felt wholly trusting of me, and it conscionable benignant of worked."
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Up All Night
Oh baby! This drama had a star-studded cast.
In Up All Night, Applegate plays Reagan, who welcomes a babe miss with her hubby Chris (Will Arnett). She returns to the office—where she works with her brag and BFF Ava (Maya Rudolph)—and helium stays location with their daughter. The show, which ran from 2011-2012, follows Reagan and Chris arsenic they modulation from the beingness that they knew earlier having kids to their day-to-day present arsenic caller parents and effort to equilibrium it all.
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Vacation
Pack your bags and instrumentality a travel down representation lane to Applegate's 2015 movie Vacation.
A follow-up to the 1983 classical National Lampoon's Vacation, this movie follows a grown-up Rusty Griswold (Ed Helms), who takes his woman Debbie (Applegate) and 2 kids James (Skyler Gisondo) and Kevin (Steele Stebbins) connected a cross-country roadworthy travel to the amusement parkland Walley World, conscionable similar helium did with his household years ago. However, things don't precisely spell according to program and determination are hilarious twists and turns on the way.
The movie is besides afloat of personage cameos, including from Chris Hemsworth, Leslie Mann, Regina Hall, Keegan-Michael Key, and, of course, archetypal star Chevy Chase.
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Bad Moms
Bad Moms? Great movie.
Applegate's Gwendolyn, the PTA ma who appears to person it each together, is a hilarious adversary to Mila Kunis' Amy, who tries to juggle it each and beryllium the "perfect mom." After Gwendolyn's cook merchantability restrictions push Amy excessively far, Kunis' character decides to ditch the unrealistic expectations and forms a relationship with chap moms Carla (Kathryn Hahn) and Kiki (Kristen Bell). Amy runs for PTA president against Gwendolyn and is cheered connected by Carla and Kiki. Together, they person immoderate amusive and fig retired however to amended enactment moms alternatively of enactment much unit connected them.
Applegate reprised her relation of Gwendolyn for the 2017 sequel A Bad Moms Christmas.
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Dead to Me
After Applegate's quality Jen Harding loses her hubby successful a hit-and-run car accident, she forms a relationship with Judy Hale (Linda Cardellini), who says she mislaid her fiancé to a bosom attack. However, it soon becomes clears that Judy's past isn't exactly what it seems.
Over the people of its 3 seasons, Applegate—who is besides an enforcement shaper connected the series—has received respective nominations for her work, including 3 Emmy nominations and 4 SAG Award nods. The histrion was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis during the last season, and Cardellini precocious revealed what it was similar for them to movie their last scene.
"We had a truly hard clip saying goodbye," Cardellini told The Hollywood Reporter. "Jen and Judy, and Linda and Christina were crying immoderate truly large tears. I deliberation what you spot successful the amusement is that Christina is perfectly arsenic superb arsenic she's ever been, and she is conscionable an unthinkable actress. She tin truly bash it all."
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