Megyn Kelly is facing a wave of criticism from celebrities after making disparaging comments about Christina Applegate’s reported multiple sclerosis (MS) diagnosis.
Applegate, 54, stunned fans this week by saying her doctor had told her she does not have MS, despite experiencing debilitating symptoms for more than five years.
The actress first announced her diagnosis in the summer of 2021. During a new episode of her Messy podcast, she said the latest medical assessment had left her without answers. “You don’t get misdiagnosed and then all of a sudden I’m better. I haven’t gotten better,” Applegate said.
“If anything, I’ve gotten worse. So I’m back at square one where I don’t know what’s going on with me.”
Kelly discussed Applegate’s revelation on The Megyn Kelly Show, accusing the actress of taking her supporters on “a wild goose chase.”
“I cannot keep up, you guys,” Kelly said. She questioned Applegate’s decision to speak publicly about her health, adding: “She has no idea what she actually has and I just think this is like the problem with celebrities, wanting to lean into their health problems, and ‘now I will be the face of MS.’”
Kelly went on to say that Applegate was upset because she could no longer position herself as “the face of this disease.” She also claimed the actress had created “a cottage industry” around discussing her MS.
Megyn Kelly has faced backlash from celebrities after making disparaging comments about Christina Applegate’s multiple sclerosis (MS) diagnosis.
Christina Applegate, 54, shocked fans by saying her doctor told her she does not have MS, despite more than five years of debilitating symptoms. She is pictured in 2023.
Kelly’s comments quickly triggered an online backlash. Janice Dean, a former Fox News colleague who has lived with MS, called the commentator a “mean girl” in a strongly worded post on X.
“I’ve kept my mouth shut for a long time about #meangirl@megynkelly,” Dean wrote. She then alleged that Kelly had “ghosted” her after endorsing Andrew Cuomo for mayor, saying she had told Kelly that the endorsement had “broken my heart.”
Dean also condemned Kelly’s remarks about Applegate. “Having #MS for over 20 years, she knows how long it took for doctors to diagnose me,” she wrote.
“I think Christina is brave for telling the truth and I’m grateful she became a voice for so many of us,” Dean continued. She added that she would have more to say once she had recovered, explaining that she had been ill for several weeks and in and out of the hospital.
Conservative political commentator Eric Bolling defended Kelly, responding directly to Dean. “Janice, I worked with both of you at Fox. I saw firsthand how Megyn backed you and helped elevate your career,” he wrote.
“Watching you publicly trash her now and slap ‘#meangirl’ on it is f*****g disgraceful,” Bolling added.
He argued that Dean could disagree with Kelly without using their former friendship “as ammunition for a public pile-on.” Bolling called the post “ashamed” behavior and wrote that he was proud to call Kelly his friend and had her back.
Representatives for Kelly and Applegate declined to comment when contacted by Our News Outlet. A representative for Janice Dean has also been contacted.
Melissa Gilbert, best known for starring in Little House on the Prairie, also used social media to criticize Kelly.
Earlier this year, Kelly had criticized Gilbert for promoting her lifestyle brand online after the actor faced child sex abuse charges. Those charges were dismissed in October 2026.
In an Instagram post, Gilbert wrote: “At the risk of you using your platform to lash out at ME now… AGAIN …I just want to ask that you think about one thing—What if you found yourself suffering from some horrible disease?”
‘And that disease was diagnosed. And that diagnosis was devastating, but you chose to live your life, fight, bring attention to that disease and advocate for others with that disease. Only to find out, YEARS later, that the diagnosis was wrong. Now you are back at square one.
The actress, who announced her diagnosis in summer of 2021, made the shock revelation on a new episode of her Messy podcast, saying, ‘You don’t get misdiagnosed and then all of a sudden I’m better. I haven’t gotten better’ Pictured in January 2024 in LA
SiriusXM host Kelly addressed the revelation on The Megyn Kelly Show – where she accused Applegate of leading her fans ‘on a wild goose chase.’ She said, ‘She’s crying now because I guess she no longer gets to be the face of this disease’ – pictured 2025
Kelly’s remarks sparked outrage online, with the commentator branded a ‘mean girl’ by Fox News alum Janice Dean, who has MS, in an explosive X post
Conservative political commentator Eric Bolling leapt to Kelly’s defense
‘Still battling the same debilitating, horrible symptoms while now having to put your body through a myriad of new, painful tests to figure out why you are so horribly sick. I just want you to imagine that for one moment. Imagine what that might feel like for you.
‘Or how you might feel if it happened to one of your children or your spouse or someone you cared deeply about. I just sometimes wish that maybe you’d take a moment to dig deep in your soul and find a modicum of empathy, before you speak. Please feel free to go after me now.
‘Actually, I’d prefer that, than you attack someone who, along with those who love her, are truly suffering. @christinaapplegate @megynkelly @megynkelly @amevipix #empathy #compassion #takeabreath.’
The View hosts Whoopi Goldberg and Sara Haines also lambasted Kelly, with the Ghost star saying: ‘So, let me ask you, ma’am, you think Christina wanted to have MS so she could have a good time? Are you crazy?’
Little House on the Prairie star Melissa Gilbert also took to social media to slam Kelly. Earlier this year, Kelly criticized Gilbert for promoting her lifestyle brand on social media amid after the actor was hit with child sex abuse charges – which were dismissed in October 2026
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Haines added: ‘Who wants to be the face of MS? Talk about kicking someone when they’re down. She got a diagnosis and wanted to help other people.’
The social media furor comes days after Applegate’s tearful misdiagnosis reveal.
Speaking of the moment her doctor told her of her misdiagnosis, a tearful Applegate, who was recently hospitalized, said: ‘She came into my room and said, “Congratulations, you don’t have MS”.
‘I was, like, not happy at all. Everybody else was so happy.
MS is a condition in which the immune system attacks the body and causes nerve damage to the brain and spinal cord.
It is an incurable, lifelong condition. Symptoms can be mild in some, and in others more extreme causing severe disability.
Symptoms include fatigue, difficulty walking, vision problems, bladder problems, numbness or tingling, muscle stiffness and spasms, problems with balance and co-ordination, and problems with thinking, learning and planning.
Applegate, who has relied on a wheelchair and cane for years, and been forced to step away from her stellar acting career, said: ‘I’ve gone through a great depression because of it.
‘But I lost everything. I lost my job. I lost – I’m sorry. What do you say to someone who’s been living with this for six years – God, I’m so sorry – because it stopped my life.
Applegate is seen in April 2025 in LA
Applegate is pictured with daughter Sadie, 15, in 2023
‘I still have to use wheelchairs when I go to the doctor’s office. I can’t walk from the car to the room. I’m still in this. Nothing magical happened when she said, “You don’t have MS.” Nothing magical happened.
‘It’s weird because I feel like I let everybody down, It’s this weird feeling because I became this – you and I, the poster children for MS.
‘And everything I was doing. I had a reason. I had a f***ing reason as to why my day sucked every day.
‘And now I don’t have a reason and it’s very unnerving and it’s very confusing for me.’
Applegate added the misdiagnosis is a ‘mindf**k’ and that she is still in ‘a state of shock’ as she seeks answers over the true nature of her illness.
Earlier in February, Applegate shared that she is mainly confined to her bed due to her MS battle.
During an interview with People at the time, the star explained how the pain has largely kept her in bed.
However, she will make the effort to leave her bedroom for her teenage daughter Sadie, such as taking her to school.
‘I want to take her; it’s my favorite thing to do. It’s the only time we have together by ourselves,’ the actress told the outlet.
‘I tell myself, “Just get her there safely and get home so you can get back into bed.” And that’s what I do.’
Applegate further expressed: ‘My life isn’t wrapped up with a bow. People’s lives, sorry for lack of a better term, f***ing suck sometimes. So I’m being as honest and raw as I possibly can.’
‘I don’t have patience for bulls*** any more, for things that are meaningless or merely “extra.”‘
Applegate shared the news of her MS diagnosis on social media in August 2021.
And in 2022 she posted a photo of her canes, and said needing help with walking is her ‘new normal.’
During an episode of her MeSsy podcast last year, the actress revealed that she had been hospitalized multiple times amid her MS battle.
‘For three years since I was diagnosed, I’ve been in the hospital upwards of 30 times,’ she told her co-host Jamie-Lynn Sigler, who is also battling the same disease.
‘That is unimaginable, okay? They’ve done every test known to man on me, put so much radiation into my body from CT scans to everything else.’
When it came to penning her memoir, which was released on March 3, Applegate previously shared that she made the decision to pen the book when she was ‘forced to slow down.’
