Lauren Weedman is opening up about life after her Bell’s palsy diagnosis—and how she’s learned to accept a lasting change.
The 57-year-old actress, who was diagnosed in August 2024, shared a candid update while attending the Los Angeles premiere of “Hacks” season 5 on Wednesday, April 8, while speaking with PEOPLE.
Weedman Gives an Update
Nearly two years later, she revealed that the condition has left her with permanent effects.
“I have permanent nerve damage,” Weedman said. “And so, I’ll never have a smile thing.”
The moment came into focus during a recent interaction with a photographer.
“The [photographer] down there said, ‘Give us a smile, big smile,’” she recalled. “I was like, ‘I have a disability.’ And I was like, ‘But I’ve accepted it more.’”
Bell’s palsy causes sudden weakness or paralysis in the facial muscles, often affecting one side of the face.
For Weedman, the diagnosis brought not just physical changes, but an emotional adjustment that took time to fully process.
“I was secretly very sad,” she admitted. “I didn’t realize I was sad until the physical therapist kept going, ‘It’s a chronic condition. It’s never going to go away, Lauren. You’re always going to have this.’ And I was like, ‘I don’t know how to even process that.’”
She continued, reflecting on the deeper impact: “And to think you’re not going to look like you, is such a… but that’s aging too, so it’s going hand-in-hand. But yeah, I feel like I had a couple nights where I got some come to Jesus moments.”
Weedman Continues to Work
Rather than step away from acting, Weedman chose to incorporate her experience into her work.
Her condition has been written into characters on shows like “Hacks,” “Abbott Elementary,” and “Sirens.”
She especially praised the team behind Hacks for their approach.
“… I had Bell’s palsy in the show, the way that ‘Hacks’ was the first show I was allowed that I was asked to be on and they didn’t care that I had it going on, which was incredible,” she said.
Weedman’s diagnosis came during a brief break from work, but she made it clear that waiting for recovery wasn’t an option.
“The idea of sitting out and waiting for it to get better just was not an option,” she explained to HuffPost back in May 2025, noting that she wanted to be upfront with collaborators to avoid added stress.
Instead, she leaned into the challenge—both personally and professionally.
This wasn’t her first experience with Bell’s palsy.
She previously had a mild case while pregnant with her son, Leo, but that episode resolved quickly.
