During Monday’s episode of Dancing With the Stars, Selma Blair announced she was dropping out of the competition, citing her health. The Cruel Intentions star was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) in 2018 and opened up about the toll her body has taken since joining the show.
In a pre-recorded segment, Blair explained how everything was becoming too much for the ‘safety’ of her bones. “There’s just intensive bone trauma and inflammation among rips and tears so I could do extensive damage that of course, I do not want,” said the 50-year-old.
Multiple sclerosis is a disease that affects the central nervous system, ultimately disrupting the communication between the brain and other parts of the body. It often results in numbness, tingling, mood changes, memory problems, pain, fatigue, blindness, and/or paralysis.
Selma Blair was paired with Sasha Farber and the couple seemed to be getting better each week. They scored a 28 in each of the first three weeks of the show, but that improved to a 32 during the show’s Disney+ Night in Week 4. They did a quickstep to ‘The Muppet Show Theme.’
On Monday, she explained that she has been ‘monitored’ by her doctors ever since entering the show, adding she had several MRIs done recently. “When the results came back, it just all adds up to I can’t. I can’t. I can’t go on with the competition. I pushed as far as I could,” she said.
Selma Blair noted that she’ll be taking this time to lead by example for her 11-year-old son, Arthur. She wants to teach him that ‘sometimes you have to make hard decisions.’ While she clearly didn’t want to drop out of the show, she knew it’s about doing what’s best for her body.
The actress opened up about her battle with MS in a memoir released in May of this year – it’s called Mean Baby: A Memoir of Growing Up. She also reflects on her complicated relationship with her mother and her battle with alcohol addiction – she started drinking at 7 years old.
Selma Blair Dances With Sasha Farber One Last Time
Although fans were disappointed – but understanding – to hear the news, Selma Blair wasn’t going to leave them hanging. In what was her last performance with Sasha Farber, the two danced one last time. The theme was celebrating the star’s most memorable year of their life.
Selma and Sasha did a Waltz routine to ‘What the World Needs Now Is Love’ by Andra Day. They danced beautifully and received the only perfect score of the night – a 40/40 after all four judges gave them a 10. There couldn’t have been a better way to exit, that’s for sure.
“It’s so hard for me to take care because I don’t want to, ’cause I want to be here. But I know as a mom and someone that also wants to represent some people that are taking chances and sometimes there are just consequences to any chance you take. And mine is fine. I’m going to be okay,” said Blair after receiving her score.
Her son, Arthur, was in attendance to watch his mother’s final performance. “Arthur, I love you the most and I just want to say, I loved this. And sometimes there’s going to be uncomfortable things to do in life and you just do it with a smile,” she said in a tribute to her little one.
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Selma Blair has had an incredible career and she doesn’t plan on stopping now. She’s most known for her roles in Cruel Intentions, Brown’s Requiem, Legally Blonde, The Sweetest Thing, Anger Management, and Hellboy. We can’t wait to see what she has in store for the future.
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