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Christina Applegate is grateful and all, but …
The “Dead to Me” star — who announced in 2021 that she had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis — received a standing ovation as she walked onstage at the Emmy Awards in January.
In a teaser clip released Monday for Applegate’s soon-to-air interview with “Good Morning America,” Robin Roberts asked the “Married … With Children” alum how she felt about the standing ovation — and it’s not the gracious, publicist-pleasing response some might expect.
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“I actually kinda blacked out,” Applegate recalled of the experience. “People said, ‘Oh, you were so funny,’ and I’m like, I don’t even know what I said. I don’t know what I was doing. I got so freaked out that I didn’t even know what was happening anymore.”
Applegate added that the ovation made her feel “really beloved” and was “a beautiful thing,” before really sharing how she felt about the experience.
“Then, I’m just going to say this, that audience stood up for everybody,” she cracked.
Applegate appeared on the Emmys stage on Jan. 15 after a montage of her years of work on TV played for the audience, whose response, some might argue, was merely a celebration of her long career. But considering Applegate’s MS diagnosis and that she walked onstage aided by a cane and the arm of Emmy host Anthony Anderson, the effusive reaction also felt tinged by ableism, like she should be heralded as a hero for bravely living with a disability and showing up to a gig.
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Applegate, who in the moment appeared to find the collective act touching, did humorously point out the irony.
“Thank you so much. Oh, my God. You’re totally shaming me, with disability, for standing up,” she quipped. “It’s fine! Body not by Ozempic.”
She also called out the audience for clapping and cheering after practically every word that came out of her mouth.
“We don’t have to applaud every time I do something,” she eventually said.
Although the audience’s reaction did seem a bit saccharine, Applegate did not sugarcoat how she feels now about her disability as she spoke to “GMA,” admitting to Roberts that she is still grieving the news of her diagnosis.
“I’m not puttin’ a time stamp on it,” Applegate said. “I’m never gonna wake up and go, ‘This is awesome.’ I’m just gonna tell you that. Like, it’s just not gonna happen.”
Applegate also revealed that she’s “isolating” because leaving the house is hard for her. But she offered a glimmer of hope as well.
“I wake up and I’m reminded of it every day…. But I might get to a place where I will function a little bit better,” she said.
“Good Morning America” will release more footage of its interview with Applegate on its broadcast Wednesday.