Selma Blair discusses her new documentary, ‘Introducing Selma Blair,’ and explains what her multiple sclerosis remission means.
Actor Selma Blair has put the most intimate parts of her life and multiple sclerosis diagnosis on display with her new documentary “Introducing Selma Blair,” directed by Rachel Fleit. But while Blair doesn’t pull any punches, she also doesn’t pretend that what she has gone through with her diagnosis will mirror everyone else’s experience. So, rather than create a scientific roadmap of treatment options, she simply wanted to tell her story. “Sometimes we see the real extremes with disease or illness where some people are really incapacitated and some people are more benign. I wanted examples. I wanted to feel like I wasn’t going crazy,” Blair said during a Television Critics Assn. press tour panel for her new project, streaming on Discovery Plus on Oct.21. “I just thought I was going bat-shit crazy.” Feeling that way, which included being “overwhelmed” at many times, especially as she embarked upon hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT), Blair agreed to the documentary because she “just wanted to lead by example, saying, ‘This is where I am.’ If I slow down and have patience with myself, I find, this too shall pass.” The documentary follows Blair as she undergoes HSCT and as the world shifts due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
