Selma Blair’s debut on Dancing with the Stars this week brought further attention and awareness to her battle with multiple sclerosis.
Blair, an actress best known for her starring roles in Cruel Intentions and Legally Blonde, announced in 2018 that she was diagnosed with MS. She is one of about 1 million people in the U.S. living with MS.
Since her diagnosis, Blair has been open about the struggles associated with living with the condition while also advocating for the rights of actors with disabilities.
Blair was also appointed Chief Creative Officer of inclusive makeup brand GUIDE Beauty earlier this summer, and recent ads and posts show her using the makeup brushes and other products that are easy for anyone to use.
For her first performance on the show, Blair and her partner Sasha Faber danced to “Time of My Life” by David Cook. Their routine received 28 votes out of 40 possible votes from the judges and the duo avoided elimination.
Following the routine, Blair spoke with Access Hollywood about how she felt “amazing” during the performance, which was notable in that she left her cane behind.
“My cane has been amazing… I have such balance issues… I have such love for my cane, for all my canes, but to leave it behind and say, ‘I am going to have a person support me now,’ it’s a totally new thing, physically,” she said.
In addition to appearing on Dancing with the Stars, Blair also presented the award for Best Drama Series, the final award of the night, at the Emmys earlier this month.
Blair’s dancing routine was also widely praised by MS advocacy groups online.
In related news for the MS community, Genentech also launched a bilingual direct-to-consumer campaign this week for Ocrevus. The goal of the campaign, titled “More Progress, Less Progression” or “Más Progreso, Menos Progresión” in Spanish, is to encourage people with MS to discuss early treatment of Ocrevus with their doctor in the hopes of delaying disability progression.
