Christina Applegate couldn’t hide her emotions as she was met with a standing ovation while presenting at the 2023 Emmys amid her multiple sclerosis battle. The 52-year-old actress, who announced in 2021 that she had been diagnosed with the disabling disease of the central nervous system, has largely stayed out of the spotlight as of late but made a rare public appearance to present the award for supporting actress in a comedy series to The Bear‘s Ayo Edebiri Sunday.
Applegate earned an Emmy nod this year for outstanding actress in a comedy series for her role in Netflix’s final season of Dead to Me, and surprised attendees when she also took to the stage as a presenter with the help of the night’s host, Anthony Anderson, and her cane. As Applegate walked to the podium, the entire audience rose to their feet for a standing ovation, leaving the Married With Children alum visibly moved.
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Applegate pushed through with her signature humor, joking, “Thank you so much! Oh my God! You’re totally shaming me [and my] disability by standing up.” She added, “Body not by Ozempic,” in reference to the popular weight loss drug before launching into a recollection of her most popular roles throughout the years. “Some of you may know me as Kelly Bundy from Married With Children,” joking after another round of applause, “We don’t have to applaud every time I do something,” and telling the audience, “I’m going to cry more than I’ve been crying.”
Applegate’s appearance at the Emmys comes after she told Vanity Fair in May she doesn’t see herself returning to the screen ever again after decades of acting. “I’m probably not going to work on-camera again,” she told the publication at the time. “It’s about finding what I’m capable of doing. I’m so new in this right now. It takes time to kind of figure out this disease, and figure out what’s bringing on symptoms. I’m just a newbie to all of this. So I’m trying to figure it out – and I’m also in mourning for the person who I was. I have to find a place that’s as loving as my [Dead to Me] set was, where they won’t think I’m a diva by saying, ‘Hey, I can only work five hours.’”
