After being diagnosed withmultiple sclerosis in 2021, Applegate announced she would step away from appearing on screen, but would continue doing voice work.
Applegate was born inHollywood, Los Angeles, California. Her father, Robert William "Bobby" Applegate (1942–2025), was a staff producer atDot Records;[2] her mother,Nancy Priddy, is a singer and actress. She was named after theAndrew Wyeth paintingChristina's World, for which her mother also named a song on her albumYou've Come This Way Before.[3] Her parents separated shortly after her birth and Christina was raised by her mother. She has two half-siblings, Alisa and Kyle, from her father's second marriage. As a child, Applegate trained as a dancer in various styles, includingjazz andballet.[4]
Applegate made her television debut in 1972 alongside her mother in the soap operaDays of Our Lives and starred in a commercial forPlaytex baby bottles at 3 months old.[5] She made her film debut in the 1981 horror filmJaws of Satan (orKing Cobra) and appeared in the 1981 movieBeatlemania. She debuted as a youngGrace Kelly in the television biopicGrace Kelly (1983) and appeared in her first television series inShowtime's political comedyWashingtoon (1985), in which she played a congressman's daughter.
From 1987 to 1997, Applegate played the ditzy, sexuallypromiscuous daughter,Kelly Bundy, onFox's first sitcom,Married... with Children. While working on the series, Applegate was seen inDance 'til Dawn (1988) andStreets (1990), in which a teenage drug addict is stalked by a psychotic police officer. She guest-starred in21 Jump Street (1988) andTop of the Heap (1991) and hostedSaturday Night Live (1993) andMADtv (1996). The character of Sue Ellen Crandell in the black comedy featureDon't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead (1991) was Applegate's first starring role in a mainstream film, playing a rebellious teenager who is forced to take care of siblings after their summer babysitter dies. She had roles in films such asVibrations (1995),Across the Moon (1995),Wild Bill (1995),Tim Burton'sMars Attacks! (1996), andGregg Araki'sNowhere (1997). Contrary to reports, she did not audition for Titanic, as she told Vanity Fair in their May 2023 edition: "No. Who said that?…That would not have come across my desk, if I had a desk." [Shaw, Vanity Fair, May 4, 2023.] WhenMarried... with Children was cancelled in 1997, producers pitched a spinoff centered on Kelly Bundy, but Applegate declined.[6]
In 1998, Applegate starred as Claudine Van Doozen in the independent featureClaudine's Return (orKiss of Fire), appeared in the action-comedyThe Big Hit and played the fiancée of a mob boss in the Mafia satireJane Austen's Mafia.
In 1998, Applegate began portraying the title role in the NBC sitcomJesse. She won thePeople's Choice Award for Favorite Female Performer in a New Television Series, theTV Guide Award for Favorite Star of a New Series, and was nominated for aGolden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Comedy.[citation needed] The series was cancelled in 2000.[10]
Applegate played the dual role of a 12th-century noblewoman, Princess Rosalind, and her 21st-century descendant, Julia Malfete, in the time-travel comedyJust Visiting (2001). She was Princess Gwendolyn and Kate in the moviePrince Charming (2001). After playingCameron Diaz's level-headed best friend, Courtney Rockcliffe, inThe Sweetest Thing (2002), she appeared inHeroes (2002), the romantic airplane comedyView from the Top (2003), the true-crime filmWonderland (2003) based on theWonderland murders, and theGram Parsons biopicGrand Theft Parsons (2003). In 2004, she starred withBen Affleck in the holiday comedySurviving Christmas and withMatt Dillon inEmployee of the Month. She was the executive producer ofComforters, Miserable (2001).
Applegate has performed on stage inThe Axeman's Jazz,Nobody Leaves Empty Handed,The Runthrough, andJohn Cassavetes'The Third Day (co-starringGena Rowlands). In 2004, she debuted on Broadway as Charity Hope Valentine in a revival of the 1966 musicalSweet Charity. In late April 2005, she took part in the annual Broadway Cares' Easter Bonnet Competition, being sawed in half by a magician in their Clearly Impossible sawing illusion.Sweet Charity ended its Broadway run on December 31, 2005.[12] Applegate won the 2005 Theatre World Award and was nominated for a 2005Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her role in the musical.
While appearing inSweet Charity, Applegate broke her foot and it was announced that the musical would close during previews. She persuaded the producers to change their minds.[12] Because of her injury, she had to wear special shoes to prevent another accident. In a 2013 interview, she said that because of what happened, she "actually can't dance anymore. And that is sad for me because I always wanted to go back. But I probably won't be able to."[13] She does dance whenever the opportunity presents, but cannot perform in strenuous roles.[13]
In 2011, Applegate starred in theFarrelly brothers comedyHall Pass. Applegate also starred in the NBCsitcomUp All Night withMaya Rudolph andWill Arnett, which debuted on September 14, 2011.[18] On February 8, 2013, she left the series after its second-season hiatus, which was leading into a planned format change. The series was ultimately cancelled.[19]
On July 31, 2013, Applegate was featured on the second episode of the fourth season of the revived American version of theTLC seriesWho Do You Think You Are?. The episode centered on Applegate trying to find information about her paternal grandmother, Lavina Applegate Walton, who was absent for most of Applegate's father's life and died when he was young. Applegate learned that Walton died in 1955 from tuberculosis and alcohol-relatedcirrhosis.[20]
In 2013, Applegate reprised her role as Veronica Corningstone in the comedy sequel filmAnchorman 2: The Legend Continues. The film received positive reviews from critics and was a box office success. In 2014, she had a starring voice role as Mary Beth in the animated musical fantasy filmThe Book of Life. In 2015, she starred withEd Helms in theNational Lampoon sequelVacation, the fifth full-length movie episode of the road-trip comedies. They played Rusty Griswold and his wife, Debbie, who with their two sons take a trip to Walley World, just as Rusty did with his parents in the 1983 original film,National Lampoon's Vacation. The film was poorly reviewed, but was a box office success. In 2016, she starred as Gwendolyn James in the comedy filmBad Moms withMila Kunis,Kristen Bell, andKathryn Hahn. The film earned mixed reviews from critics and was a box office success.[21] She reprised her role for a cameo appearance in the November 2017 sequelA Bad Moms Christmas. Also in 2017, she starred in the comedy filmCrash Pad.
In 2024, Applegate began apodcast with fellow actress with multiple sclerosisJamie-Lynn Sigler calledMeSsy about their friendship based on the condition.[27]
Applegate will release her memoirYou with the Sad Eyes in March 2026.[28]
Applegate married actorJohnathon Schaech inPalm Springs, California, on October 20, 2001.[29] Schaech filed for divorce in December 2005, citing irreconcilable differences,[29] and the divorce was finalized in August 2007.[30] She began dating Dutch musicianMartyn LeNoble in 2009. The couple became engaged onValentine's Day 2010[31] and married on February 23, 2013, at their Los Angeles home.[32] It was the second marriage for both.[33] They have one daughter, Sadie, born in January 2011.[34]
People reported in 2008 that Applegate had been diagnosed withbreast cancer. A representative stated, "Christina Applegate was diagnosed with an early stage of breast cancer. Detected early through doctor-orderedmagnetic resonance imaging (MRI), the cancer was not life-threatening. Christina is following the recommended treatment of her doctors and will have a full recovery."[35] It was announced that she was cancer-free after a doublemastectomy, although cancer had been found in only one breast.[36] She has an inherited genetic trait, aBRCA1[37]mutation, which can trigger breast andovarian cancer. Her mother is also a breast cancer survivor. Applegate said when she first was diagnosed, "I was just shaking and then also immediately, I had to go into 'take care of business mode',"[37] which included a change to a more healthy diet.[citation needed]
Applegate announced in August 2021 that she had received a diagnosis ofmultiple sclerosis a few months before.[38] The disease significantly affected her ability to perform in the final season ofDead to Me, for whose success she credits her co-starLinda Cardellini and showrunnerLiz Feldman's support and openness in makingreasonable adjustments to her filming schedule.[39]
Applegate said in 2023 that because of her illness she probably would no longer act on camera, but that she would be open tovoice-over work, such as a planned animated revival ofMarried... with Children, in addition to working behind the scenes.[40][41]
In 2009, Applegate announced plans to return as the ambassador for Lee National Denim Day.[45] Also in 2009, she founded Right Action for Women, a charitable foundation dedicated to breast-cancer screening for women and focused on the type ofMRI scan that saved her life.[46] In February 2015, she was awarded theSaint Vintage Love Cures Award at the 2nd annualunite4:humanity event hosted byVariety magazine for her dedication to and work with Right Action for Women.[47]
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