Selma Blair, 53, on MS Remission: ‘I’m Tired a Lot. That’s the Truth of It’

After years of publicly documenting her battle with multiple sclerosis, Selma Blair says she is feeling better, though she is not symptom-free.

“I am feeling well,” she told Today on April 14. Then she added something of a disclaimer: “I’m tired a lot. That’s the truth of it.”

Blair, 53, has been in MS remission since 2021, but she is clear-eyed about what that means in practice.

For Blair, best known for her roles in Legally Blonde, Cruel Intentions and Hellboy, the update marks another milestone in a health journey since revealing her diagnosis in 2018. She entered remission in 2021 after intensive treatment that included chemotherapy and a stem cell transplant.

Multiple sclerosis is a chronic autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks the protective covering around nerve fibers in the brain and spinal cord, disrupting communication between the brain and body. Symptoms can include numbness, vision changes, cognitive problems, muscle weakness and balance issues.

Selma Blair attends the Vanity Fair Oscar Party in Los Angeles on March 15, 2026. Blair was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2018.

Amy Sussman/Getty Images for Vanity Fair

Her recovery has not been linear. Blair said in a September 2025 interview with Today that she underestimated how long it would take to regain strength after treatment and later learned that what she believed had been a relapse-free remission had included an undetected relapse. A new doctor identified it and adjusted her treatment, improving her symptoms.

No two cases of MS are alike. That is why neuropsychologist Meghan Beier, an assistant professor of physical medicine and rehabilitation at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, told AARP that many specialists call it the “snowflake disease.” Some patients have mild symptoms with little day-to-day impact. Others require round-the-clock care.

Even patients not in the midst of an active episode typically still deal with problems like fatigue or chronic pain, Beier notes. They are simply not as ill as they are during a flare.

Blair’s latest comments also reflect a reality many people with MS know well: Remission does not mean the disease disappears.

Selma Blair and Matthew Davis in a scene from “Legally Blonde.”

Alamy Stock Photo

In a 2022 interview with AARP, Blair put the larger question plainly: “If I’m lucky, I could reach 85, MS or not. Our abilities are always fleeting, but when they fail, it’s treated as a tragedy. How do we enter a chaotic shift in our life without feeling it’s an end to something? We just have to adapt.”

On caregiving, she has been equally direct. “Seeking caregiving is not giving up,” she told AARP. “It’s getting help to get better and live your best life.”

Selma Blair and son Arthur Saint Bleick attend an event in Los Angeles on Jan. 6, 2026.

JC Olivera/Variety/Getty Images

Her openness about MS, along with that of Christina Applegate, who also has MS, has helped raise awareness of a disease that affects nearly 1 million Americans and about 2.9 million people worldwide, according to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.

Blair is gradually expanding her work again. She is preparing for the family drama film Ethan Almighty – Ethan’s Law, according to The Hollywood Reporter. She recently told WWD she has been “learning stamina again” while rebuilding strength and boxing with a trainer.