1971-present
Christina Applegate Today: Actor Earns Standing Ovation for Emmys Appearance
Count Christina Applegate’s ex-husband Johnathan Schaech among the viewers inspired by her appearance at the 75th Primetime Emmy Awards on January 15. Schaech said in a post to social media site X (formerly Twitter) that Applegate, 52, “is the toughest human being I’ve ever met” after she presented the opening award of the ceremony.
Applegate, who was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2021, received a standing ovation after taking the stage with the help of host Anthony Anderson and a walking cane. The actor revealed in 2023 that she might never work on camera again because of the disease.
“She danced opening night on Broadway on a broken foot! Beat cancer!,” Schaech posted, referencing Applegate’s prior bout with breast cancer. “So proud of her! Go, Christina!”
Designer Christian Siriano, who made Applegate’s cranberry gown for the event, also praised the actor in an Instagram post. “Christina you are divine and I will dress you any day of the week! What a woman,” he wrote in a caption.
Who Is Christina Applegate?
Actor Christina Applegate received her breakthrough role as teen airhead Kelly Bundy on Fox’s popular sitcom Married... with Children at age 15, paving the way for starring gigs on Jesse, Samantha Who?, Up All Night, and Dead to Me. Applegate has also enjoyed success on the big screen, with appearances in comedies like Anchorman and the reboot of Vacation. She has used her high profile to raise awareness about breast cancer and multiple sclerosis through her public battles with the diseases.
Quick Facts
FULL NAME: Christina Applegate
BORN: November 25, 1971
BIRTHPLACE: Los Angeles, California
SPOUSES: Johnathan Schaech (2001-2007) and Martyn LeNoble (2013-present)
CHILD: Sadie
ASTROLOGICAL SIGN: Sagittarius
Early Years
Born on November 25, 1971, in Los Angeles, Christina Applegate was only three months old when she made her TV debut on the daytime soap opera Days of Our Lives. Applegate made that first appearance in the arms of her mother, actor Nancy Priddy. Priddy raised Christina on her own, after her split from Applegate’s father, record executive Bobby Applegate.
TV Shows and Movies
Married... With Children
After performing in commercials for Kmart and appearing in several movies and TV shows, Applegate landed her breakthrough role as teen airhead Kelly Bundy on Fox’s popular sitcom Married... with Children at age 15. She played the daughter of obnoxious dad Al (Ed O’Neill) and pushy Peggy (Katey Sagal), as well as the big sister of Bud (David Faustino) on the show.
The sitcom proved to be a huge hit, lasting for an impressive 11 seasons. During this period, Applegate also took on several film projects, including the 1991 comedy Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead.
The Big Hit and Jesse
Applegate appeared in several comedy movies in the late ’90s as she sought to distance herself from the Kelly Bundy persona. She starred opposite Mark Wahlberg in the 1998 Hong Kong–tinged action-comedy The Big Hit and played the fiancée of a mob scion in the Mafia parody Mafia! with Lloyd Bridges and Jay Mohr that same year.
Also in 1998, Applegate returned to series television. Inspired by her experience with her own mother growing up, Applegate starred as a single mom balancing work and family in the sitcom Jesse. Although the show had some bright moments (including a People’s Choice award in 1999), it was canceled after two seasons.
The Sweetest Thing and Anchorman
Back on the big screen, Applegate appeared in the 2001 time-travel comedy Just Visiting, which proved to be a commercial and critical disappointment. She then had a chance to show that she could hold her own opposite some of her more respected film peers. Applegate received strong reviews as Cameron Diaz’s levelheaded best friend in The Sweetest Thing in 2002 and appeared with Gwyneth Paltrow in the flight attendant comedy A View From the Top in 2003. The following year, she proved a suitable foil to funnyman Will Ferrell in Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy.
Up All Night, Vacation, and Dead to Me
Applegate returned to television with the sitcom Samantha Who? in 2007, enjoying some success before the show was axed after two seasons. She then co-starred with Will Arnett as parents dealing with a newborn on Up All Night, which also endured for two seasons.
Applegate went on to appear in the movies Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues (2013), Vacation (2015), and Bad Moms (2016). She also lent her voice to several animated films, including the Alvin and the Chipmunks series and The Book of Life (2014). Taking another shot at television, Applegate began co-starring with Linda Cardellini on the dark comedy Dead to Me in spring 2019, earning an Emmy nomination for her performance.
Breast Cancer and MS Diagnosis
In 2008, Applegate faced her first serious health challenge. She underwent a double mastectomy after being diagnosed with an early form of breast cancer. Following the procedure, she was upbeat. Applegate donated her time to combating breast cancer by speaking publicly about the disease and raising money for research. In doing so, she joined fellow survivors Sheryl Crow and Suzanne Somers as well-respected champions of breast cancer awareness.
In October 2017, Applegate revealed she had undergone more surgery—this time, removing her fallopian tubes and ovaries—to further reduce her cancer risk.
Then while Applegate was filming the final season of Dead to Me in August 2021, doctors diagnosed the actor with multiple sclerosis. The disease impacts the body’s central nervous system by disrupting signals to and from the brain. This causes unpredictable symptoms that can include pain, fatigue, numbness, memory issues, blindness, and paralysis.
In a May 2023 interview with Vanity Fair, Applegate revealed she was “probably not going to work on-camera again” because of her diagnosis and that struggled to walk unaided. “This is a progressive disease. I don’t know if I’m going to get worse. I can do voiceover stuff because I have to support my family and keep my brain working,” she explained.
Although Applegate has limited her public appearances, she attended the Primetime Emmy Awards in January 2024. With the help of a walking cane and an escort from host Anthony Anderson, she received a standing ovation and presented the first award of the ceremony. Applegate even joked about her condition. “You’re totally shaming me with disability by standing up, it’s fine, OK,” she quipped.
Husbands and Daughter
Applegate married her longtime boyfriend, actor Jonathan Schaech, in October 2001. However, the union didn’t last, and they began divorce proceedings in November 2005.
Around this time, Applegate met Lee Grivas, a fisherman and aspiring photographer. The two connected through one of Applegate’s colleagues on the Broadway show Sweet Charity, though their relationship was reportedly a rocky one, as Applegate disapproved of his struggles with drugs.
Grivas died of an apparent drug overdose in 2008. Applegate was “profoundly saddened” by his death and added that Grivas was “missed beyond words.”
Applegate became a mom in 2011, welcoming her daughter Sadie Grace with musician Martyn LeNoble. The couple later tied the knot in 2013.
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