The final season of Dead to Me premieres Nov. 17, and its star, Christina Applegate, wanted to do an interview beforehand—albeit from bed. The 50-year-old explains her motivation to the New York Times: "This is the first time anyone's going to see me the way I am," she said. "I put on 40 pounds; I can't walk without a cane. I want people to know that I am very aware of all of that." The "that" she's referring to is multiple sclerosis, which she was diagnosed with in the summer of 2021. She said some signs did appear beforehand—a worsening tennis game, some balance issues while dancing—but "who was I to know?" The diagnosis came as filming for that third and final season was underway, and Applegate explains that production was halted for about five months.
"There was the sense of, 'Well, let's get her some medicine so she can get better,'" she says. "And there is no better. But it was good for me. I needed to process my loss of my life, my loss of that part of me. So I needed that time." Weight gain aside, Alexis Soloski writes that Applegate's "illness is nearly invisible onscreen—a feat of savvy blocking and Applegate's talent and resolve." For example, Soloski notes that in some scenes, sound technician/longtime friend Mitch B. Cohn would get on the floor and use his hands to brace her legs so she could stand. Applegate acknowledges that "if all [viewers] can concentrate on is, 'Ooh, look at the cripple,' that's not up to me. ... But hopefully people can get past it and just enjoy the ride." (Read the full interview.)
,
uBlock 
,
and
Ghostery 
)
