I
If actress Selma Blair has learned one thing in the
year since she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis,
it’s to find the humor in her life. “It’s physical come-
dy,” she quips about living with MS, as she describes
falling down in front of her 8-year-old, Arthur. “And
I get to practice in front of my son all the time.” While
other symptoms and side effects are harder to laugh
off (“Losing your eyelashes kind of sucks,” she says
of the impact of one medication), her quick wit and
frankness about her disease, which went undiag-
nosed for years, have helped Blair, 47, find comfort
in her discomfort—as well as a strength and sense
of community she didn’t expect. “It’s the strangest
thing that the time that could be the most stressful,
I am feeling the most joy,” she says, sitting in the
living room of her Los Angeles home with a few of
her favorite things: a warm fire (“Like most people
with MS, I’m always cold,” she explains), a fresh cup
of coffee and her rescue dog Pippa. “My gratitude
is much bigger than my sickness,” she says. “I have
to keep that mind-set because it’s really easy to just
crumble—and I won’t let this disease stop me.”
Born and raised in a Detroit suburb, Blair graduat-
ed magna cum laude from the University of Michigan
and moved to New York City to pursue acting. Her
first major role is the one she knows people still most
associate with her: ditzy, scene-stealing prep school
student Cecile in 1999’s cult hit Cruel Intentions.
Having worked steadily since, she’s now playing a
news and social media influencer on Netflix’s new sci-
fi drama Another Life. “It’s the first time I’m playing
someone who isn’t slapsticky,” she says of her charac-
ter, Har per Glass. “She’s very secure.” Blair hopes to
be able to continue acting while also juggling being
a doting mom to Arthur ( his father is fashion design-
er Jason Bleick, whom Blair dated from 2010 to ’12)
and focusing on her health. “I have a whole differ-
ent viewpoint now,” she says. “I’m getting better44 August 5, 2019 PEOPLE
Family
Matters
Blair co-parents
Arthur with his
father, Jason
Bleick (in June).
“Jason is a huge
part of Arthur’s
life,” Blair says.
“He’s shown up in
a big way.”TO
PS
AN
D (^) S
KIR
T: (^) T
OM
MY
(^) HI
LFI
GE
R; (^) S
HO
ES:
(^) AN
GE
LA
(^) SC
OT
T; (^) B
OT
TO
M
LEF
T: (^) C
OU
RT
ESY
(^) SE
LM
A (^) B
LA
IR