Selma Blair Opens Up About Her Struggle With Alcohol and Sexual Assault in Emotional Today Interview

Content Warning: This story contains descriptions of sensitive subjects including sexual assault and alcohol abuse.

In an emotional interview on NBC's Today Wednesday morning, Selma Blair discussed her new memoir, "Mean Baby," which delves into her struggle with alcohol abuse, her battle with multiple sclerosis (MS), and the traumatic experience of being sexually assaulted by an educator when she was a child.

Blair opened up to Savannah Guthrie about her experience with alcohol addiction, telling her that the first time she got drunk was at the age of seven, adding, "Even as a little kid, you're like, 'That's a comfort.'" Blair continued to drink heavily throughout grade school and into college and adulthood, but she has been sober since 2016, after an incident in which she blacked out on an airplane with her son, who was four years old at the time.

“The thing that made me really stop drinking was that I could have died on that plane,” said Blair. “I mean, now that I was a mother, it just changed everything.”

Selma Blair opens up to @SavannahGuthrie about her struggles with alcohol.

Savannah: How did you finally conquer it? What made the difference for you?

Blair: That I could have died on that plane. pic.twitter.com/HsM2vdmJAz

— TODAY (@TODAYshow) May 11, 2022

Blair also told Guthrie that she drank was to bury the memories of traumatic events in her life. In her book, she describes being raped several times, and on Today, she discussed the betrayal she felt when someone close to her — an educator — violated her. "He broke me," said Blair. "I loved him. Loved him [like a] father figure."

Today also shared clips of Blair's 2021 documentary Introducing, Selma Blair, which offers an inside look into her struggle with MS. The film is available to stream on Discovery+.

Deena ElGenaidi's writing has been featured in Nylon, MTV News, Insider, The AV Club, and more. You can follow her on Twitter @deenaelg.