Legal Statement Report / Published 2026-10-31

Selma Blair Apologizes for the Plane Incident in a Video

Selma Blair apologized in a video on Friday for the 11 October incident at Kennedy Airport, saying she never intended to hurt or frighten anyone and that she is sorry for those she disappointed.

A flat conceptual editorial illustration: an airport jet bridge in one-point perspective, cool teal panels, a single lit doorway at the far end casting a warm rectangle on the floor, no signage anywhere. An empty arrival moment. No people, no faces, no airline logos, no boarding passes, no readable
Conceptual editorial illustration; not a photograph of the people or event described.

THE SHORT VERSION

  • Selma Blair issued a video apology on Friday for the 11 October incident at John F. Kennedy International Airport, in which she allegedly injured a flight attendant and kicked a nurse after being removed from a plane.
  • She said her lawyers had asked her not to discuss that day, and that she had been quiet for two weeks; she is due back in court in Queens on 19 January.
  • Blair, 54, faces two state charges of second-degree assault and has pleaded not guilty; her lawyer told the court she had missed doses of a medication and hit her head on the flight.

The video came two weeks later

Selma Blair issued a video apology on Friday for the incident at John F. Kennedy International Airport on 11 October. Variety reports that she allegedly injured a flight attendant and kicked a nurse after being removed from a plane, and that she is 54 and faces two state charges of second-degree assault. Rolling Stone reports that she was arrested after the alleged assault of multiple flight attendants on an inbound flight from Los Angeles to New York. Variety names two of her films, Cruel Intentions and Legally Blonde, in its description of her. Neither outlet says who else was on the flight.

She posted the video to Instagram. Variety says she told viewers her attorneys had advised her not to say much about the case. Rolling Stone calls the post her first public address of the episode, and quotes her opening: "I know I've been quiet for a couple weeks since October 11th," she said, before adding: "And you deserve to hear from me directly. And I'm sorry that it's taken this long." She said her lawyers had asked her not to say anything about that day, and that she was listening to them. Neither outlet says when she recorded the video.

What she said to the people she disappointed

The centre of the apology is one long sentence, and both outlets print it. She said: "What I can tell you, though, is very simple, and the truest thing I know about myself, and that not one day ever have I intended to hurt or frighten anyone a day in my life." She then turned to the people she had let down: "And so to the people that I disappointed, that I hurt, I frightened, alarmed: I am so sorry."

She also thanked the people who had written to her. Rolling Stone prints the passage: "It has meant everything to me and my son, who is my world, as a scout who is also okay," she wrote. She closed by saying she would be "taking care of my health and my son". The reference to her son is the only mention of family in either account; neither outlet explains it.

Two charges and a not-guilty plea

The charges are unchanged by the video. Variety reports that Blair, 54, faces two state charges of second-degree assault over the alleged attacks on a nurse and a Port Authority officer, and that she was released from custody on $20,000 bail the following day. Rolling Stone reports that she pleaded not guilty to two counts of second-degree assault and was released on bail.

The alleged altercation is also under federal investigation. Rolling Stone reports that the FBI is looking into it, that two flight attendants reported injuries and that a third was taken to hospital, and that Blair is accused of kicking a Port Authority officer who took her to hospital as well as a nurse there. Neither outlet names the flight or any member of the crew, and neither says whether the federal inquiry and the state case are examining the same conduct.

The explanation her lawyer gave in court

Her lawyer offered an account of the flight at the arraignment. Variety reports that Shawn Barnes told the court Blair had boarded the plane after missing several doses of a drug that controls neurological symptoms, and that she fell and hit her head during the flight. He said: "These factors, your honor, coupled with the altitude, resulted in a state of severe confusion and disorientation."

Barnes also addressed intent directly. Variety quotes him saying: "Ms. Blair did not get on that plane intending for any of this." The video does not mention the medication or the fall, and neither outlet prints the full arraignment transcript or reports whether that explanation will form part of her defence at the next hearing.

What her representatives said before the video

Earlier statements set the terms of the story. Variety reports that her representatives had previously blamed a medical emergency for the episode aboard the flight from Los Angeles to New York. The video does not repeat the medical explanation. Rolling Stone reports that a spokesperson had said, contrary to reports, "Selma did not intend to harm anyone." Neither outlet says when that statement was issued.

Her representative also disputed how the story had been assembled. Rolling Stone quotes the statement to People: "Since Sunday night, the public account of what happened to Selma aboard a flight to New York has been built almost entirely on a police statement and a decade-old headline." That headline refers to a 2016 incident in which Blair was removed from a plane for causing a disturbance; two years later she said she had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.

What happens next

The case is not close to over. Variety reports that Blair is due back in court in Queens on 19 January. Neither outlet reports a plea offer, a trial date or any comment from the flight attendants or the officer named in the charges, and neither says what stage the federal inquiry has reached.

The two accounts overlap on the dates, the charges and the words of the video; they differ in what they carry around it. Variety leads with the apology and adds the court details, while Rolling Stone prints more of the post and the earlier statements from her representatives. Neither piece carries a statement from the airport, the airline or the Port Authority. Related coverage on this site includes the end of Criminal Minds: Evolution, the Broadway revival of A Few Good Men and the release context for The Invite.

Sources & reporting limits

  1. Selma Blair Apologizes for Plane Incident: 'I Am So Sorry' — Variety
  2. Selma Blair Addresses Alleged Plane Assault for First Time in New Video — Rolling Stone
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