Twenty-five years later, Christina Applegate has not forgotten these “seeds” people have planted in her head about her appearance.
During the newest episode of her and co-host Jamie-Lynn Sigler‘s podcast, MeSsy, the longtime actress revealed the only plastic surgery she’s ever had was a result of comments a producer made.
“At 27 years old, I was on a show and one of the producers, very famous people who did a very famous show as well, said, ‘Hey, we’re having trouble lighting under your eyes. Your bags under your eyes are so big,'” the now 52-year-old star said, noting they are a hereditary trait. “And he goes, ‘I suggest you get them removed.’ And you know what? I did.”
The Emmy winner also shared a more recent experience before she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis when she went in to record sound for a movie she was in and learned from the director that the studio had spent more than $100,000 to edit her face in the footage. “He goes, ‘Yeah, the studio was really upset,'” she recalled him saying. “He goes, ‘Yeah, I mean I told them it’s like she’s not Kelly Bundy anymore and, you know, so she looks older’ and they literally erased my face.” Applegate famously played Kelly Bundy for 11 seasons on the hit Fox sitcom, Married… with Children, as a teenager and young adult.
Sigler, who also has multiple sclerosis, weighed in, revealing that an editor once told her the way she walked did not “look right” and he was having a hard time working around it. “Then they need to f**king film us differently,” Applegate clapped back. “That’s the thing.”
Grappling with these experiences over her appearance while living with a chronic disease, Applegate candidly shared her concern about returning to acting, particularly after sharing personal details on their podcast.
“We talk a lot about fear of going back to work and, you know, and I’m having, like, this idea of, like, I might want to,” she said. “And now I’m like, ‘Oh, s–t, we’re being so honest about this. Are they gonna think that I’m not gonna be able to do it?'” she pondered. “Well, I filmed an entire season of television with this disease and, you know, was very successful with it.”
For more on what Applegate has candidly shared about her MS battle, check out ET’s stories below.
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