Following years as a recognizable character actress, Lauren Weedman had quite the trying year for her onscreen career.
After appearing in recent episodes of Hacks and Abbott Elementary, the actress revealed that she developed Bell’s palsy in August 2024, temporarily paralyzing her face while filming Netflix‘s Sirens.
“The idea of sitting out and waiting for it to get better just was not an option,” Weedman told Huffington Post of the condition, which resulted in the right side of her face completely freezing, the inability to align her lips or close her right eye, headaches and general malaise.
Weedman added, “I wanted to talk to [the Sirens team] about it as soon as I could so I wouldn’t be stressed the whole time.”
Sirens creator Molly Smith Metzler explained, “At that point, I had fallen in love with Lauren like everyone else had. I just felt awful that she was going through something like that. … We didn’t even wanna conceive of the show without her in it.”
“[Molly] was so kind … But it was really hard for me to think that I mattered,” said Weedman. “You don’t make a big thing out of being hurt or sick.”
Weedman suggested writing the condition into her character’s storyline, which Metzler agreed to, appreciating that the actress was “so, so game,” adding: “It’s such a terrific character trait.”
Playing private chef Patrice during the summer season in a wealthy seaside enclave, the character mentions in one episode, “Every summer, this happens; the stress of this job, my Bell’s palsy is back.”
“If it serves the character, I don’t care if I look heavy or fat or bad or whatever. But this one was a new level of [vanity],” said Weedman of watching her performance back on the monitors.
While still recovering from the condition, Weedman went on to reprise her roles as Kristin Marie Schemmenti on Abbott Elementary, and Las Vegas Mayor Jo Pezzimenti on Hacks.
Hacks creator and showrunner Lucia Aniello noted that when Weedman “said she wanted to shoot, we just went with it!” Abbott creator/star Quinta Brunson said she was “really excited about the opportunity” to keep working with Weedman, adding: “The way I look at it, that is what normalizes any form of otherness. Her dealing with it falls in line with who [Lauren] is. She just rolls with the punches and does her job.”
Weedman said she’s “so happy” she was able to continued working, noting that her teen son reminded her, “Mom, it’s no big deal. This is your Bell’s palsy era, that’s all.”
The post Lauren Weedman Opens Up About “Bell’s Palsy Era” As TV Producers Praise Her For “Rolling With The Punches” appeared first on Deadline.
