Grab your tissues, this is a very emotional one!
Selma Blair treated viewers to one beautiful last dance on Dancing With The Stars. In a very touching episode of the dance competition series on Monday evening, Selma announced she would need to drop out of the show due to health issues related to her ongoing battle with multiple sclerosis. But she wasn’t going to walk away without getting to leave it all on the ballroom floor.
In a segment of the live Disney+ series before her final bow, the Cruel Intentions star told her dance partner Sasha Farber she would be unable to continue the competition after receiving unsettling news from her doctors. Through tears, she shared:
“So, I’ve been monitored… I had MRIs and the results came back, and it all adds up to, I can’t go on with the competition. I’ve pushed as far as I could. With a chronic illness, you do have special considerations, and my body has taken a hit. It’s way too much for the safety of my bones. I could do extensive damage that I, of course, do not want.”
Determined to get one last dance, she added:
“I really want to have one last beautiful dance with you, and bow out.”
Speaking to cameras, the 50-year-old continued:
“So, this is a dance for everyone that has tried and hoped they could do more, but also, the power in realizing it’s time to walk away. I am so, so grateful to be able to do one last gentle dance.”
And that she did. Everyone in the audience (and probably at home, too!) was a puddle of tears when the package ended and Selma and Sasha took the stage with a beautiful Waltz to Andra Day’s What the World Needs Now Is Love. Check out the gorgeous performance (below).
Incredible!
When they concluded the sentimental dance, all the judges had glowing reviews for the star. Len Goodman began:
“This competition is tough for everyone, but if the others have climbed hills, you have climbed mountains.”
After praising her for treating everyone on the staff and cast so kindly throughout the season, Derek Hough noted:
“You’ve brought nothing but joy to everyone, always with a smile… thank you for sharing this journey with us all.”
Bruno Tonioli called the Hellboy alum an inspiration to “millions,” while a teary-eyed Carrie Ann Inaba said watching Selma dance over the last several weeks has been like watching a “living breathing, elegantly dancing miracle.” She concluded:
“You are a blessing and a gift.”
While speaking to host Alfonso Ribeiro before receiving her final scores, Selma thanked the audience for being so gracious to her and her castmates and reflected on the significance of the series to her, saying:
“I don’t think people understand what this show means to us here, especially this season… and to see the audience react to each and every one of us and our efforts, it’s so heartening. I wish I could stay and learn… I am so proud of everyone and I am so proud of this audience for seeing us.”
She also addressed the physical burden of the dance training and why she believes it is important for her to step aside now, adding:
“I came into the competition late, and I had really been on almost bed rest… for 10 years. So, I definitely was so excited to get into being so active and learning something… But it is a lot on your body, and it’s so hard for me to take care, because I don’t want to. I so want to be here. I am a mom, and I don’t want to be laid up again because I’m afraid I won’t get back.”
She has set an amazing example for her 11-year-old son Arthur Saint Bleick, who was in the audience watching her challenge herself and live out a dream. As hard as it must have been to drop out, it shows how seriously she takes her responsibilities as a mother and her health. She accomplished SO much in her time on DWTS, too!! She should be so proud!
As the whole world learns a lesson or two from the actress’ time on the series, her partner also had many kind words to say. Sasha acknowledged it’s been a difficult year for him following a loss in his family (he also split from fellow dance pro Emma Slater). Thanks to his time with Selma, he has a new perspective on life:
“It’s been a hard year. Losing a very close family member, it’s been hard. And getting to dance with her, she’s just turned everything the way that it needs to be. She’s inspired me again, she’s inspired so many people out there. She is a wonderful mother, an iconic actress, and a beautiful dancer now. I owe her everything.”
The judges all gave the pair 10s, sending them out with a perfect score for the week! Well deserved! After the show, Selma told ET’s Denny Directo she will miss the cast and crew the most:
“That’s why I cry, I mean, I’m not crying about Mirrorball. I have so much better than a Mirrorball here. I’m crying because I will truly miss this. I will miss loving them. I love these dancers. I love these celebrities. I love Sasha. I love our rehearsal room.”
The inspiring star continued:
“It’s a lot of love, and to walk away, and to have to let the love continue without you, it’s like, ‘Ugh.’”
Aw! Totally understandable!
It must be hard to have to drop out because of an illness she’s been battling since 2018, too. We’re sure she wishes she didn’t have to deal with chronic illness in moments like this. Despite the disappointment, she’s noticed an immense change in herself since starting the show, explaining:
“I started on a Waltz, and I remember I could barely even like, he’d show me a step and it was like, ‘Aye, backwards,’ and my body would really seize up. I’ve come so far, also physically. I don’t even have clonus in my left leg now. I have not so much of a drop foot. I’ve strengthened some muscles — I mean, tonight I just happened to be a little shaky because I got a little stuff with some muscle stuff.”
We’re glad her injuries aren’t worse! The Legally Blonde alum continued:
“I have so much improvement despite some kind of injury stuff happening — I’m so much better, and I would’ve never had the motivation to push myself in that way if it weren’t for this kind of thing with Sasha.”
She also thanked all her supporters, including former co-star Reese Witherspoon, who have cheered her on. Calling Reese a “superstar,” she gushed:
“It’s everything. We all hope there could be silver linings in every disappointment, and it has been such an overwhelming silver lining to feel this love and to feel the people I admire most in this business, or in this room, or having nothing to do with dancing, people just showing up and being supportive of me and everyone here — it breaks your heart open.”
Phew. Is someone cutting onions in here?! This is getting us in our feels. Such a touching moment to witness. Many congratulations to Selma and Sasha for going out on such a high note!
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