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Christina Applegate Reveals Her ‘Dead to Me’ Role May Be Her Last Due to MS Diagnosis

November 13, 2022

Christina Applegate has revealed that the third and final season of “Dead to Me” may be the last time fans see her on screen.

The 50-year-old ‘Anchorman’ star told Variety that her starring role as Jen Harding on the hit Netflix series may be her last acting job due to her ongoing battle with multiple sclerosis. plates.

“Jen Harding is the one who — who knows, maybe the last one I’ll play with. With my illness, I don’t know how capable I am,” Applegate said.

Christina Applegate has revealed her role in ‘Dead to Me’ may be her last acting job.
(Presley Ann/Getty Images)

She continued, “But it was a gift. It was a gift to me.”

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In August 2021, the “Married… with Children” alum revealed that she had been diagnosed with MS, a chronic condition that affects the brain and central nervous system, a few months earlier.

Applegate was filming the final season of “Dead to Me” when she received her diagnosis. The show’s production was halted for about five months while she began treatment.

“I was diagnosed while we were working, and I had to call everyone and say, ‘I have multiple sclerosis, guys. Like, what the f–k!” she said.

Applegate continued, “And then it was kind of a learning curve – we all learn – what I was going to be able to do.”

“It must have been cold, because heat is our kryptonite. You can’t work those 18-hour days, you know? It was impossible.”

She told the outlet that the cast and crew rallied around her and were “so loving.”

“If I called them in the morning and said, ‘Guys, I can’t go down the stairs,’ they were like, ‘OK! We won’t do that today. We’ll do other things. “Netflix even let us take a break for a few months so I could grieve and find treatment,” Applegate said.

The Emmy Award winner said the pain she felt while filming will be evident to “Dead to Me” viewers.

“You can see wrestling and you can see it throughout the season,” she said.

Applegate explained that she hasn’t watched the final season and doesn’t think she will because it would be “too hard” for her. However, she was determined to finish the show despite the difficulty for her.

“I couldn’t have done it without it need to tell our story,” she said. “They were going to pull the plug, you know? Because it felt like torture – and they felt like they were torturing me too. But I was like “No, no, no, no, no, Nope: We have to finish this story.”

She continued, “It’s too important to our hearts, too important to our souls. And we have to give that gift, not just to ourselves — there are people who love these characters, and we have to leave them as well. the end. “

Applegate has said her future as an actress depends on “what I can do”.

“I’m so new to this right now,” she added. “It takes time to understand this disease and understand what is causing symptoms. I’m just a newbie to all of this. So I’m trying to figure it out – and I’m also grieving for the person I was.”

“I have to find a place as loving as my set was, where they won’t think I’m a diva and say, ‘Hey, I can only work five hours.'”

She told Variety that she ruled out reprising another starring role given how difficult it was to complete filming “Dead to Me.”

“I’m pretty sure that was it, you know? But who knows — I’ll probably miss being in my bedroom,” Applegate said.

Although she may leave acting behind, the Los Angeles native said she is interested in pursuing other work in the entertainment industry.

Applegate is set to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on November 14.
(Adriana M. Barraza/WENN)

“I would love to develop stuff, I would love to produce stuff,” she said. “I have a lot of ideas in my head, and I just need to execute them.”

Earlier this month, Applegate told The New York Times that she had gained 40 pounds since her diagnosis and could no longer walk without using a cane.

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“This is the first time anyone is going to see me as I am. I’ve gained 40 pounds, I can’t walk without a cane. I want people to know that I’m very aware of all of this,” said she declared. “If people hate it, if people love it, if all they can focus on is, ‘Ooh, look cripple’, that’s not up to me. I’m sure people will say” I can ‘I can’t live without it.'”

Applegate is set to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on November 14. The ceremony, which was originally scheduled to take place in 2020, will be her first public appearance since being diagnosed with MS.

In 2019, she announced on Twitter that she was receiving the honor, which she said was “a childhood dream.”

“Now my life is a different story,” she told Variety. “People are going to see me for the first time as a disabled person, and it’s very difficult. So for me, two years ago it would have been so much better!”

Applegate paused before adding, “But maybe this time it’s more poignant. I don’t know.”

The final season of “Dead to Me” will begin airing on November 17.

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Ashley Hume is an entertainment writer for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to ashley.hume@fox.com and on Twitter: @ashleyhume