Anna Paquin is battling an undisclosed illness that is hampering her mobility.
On Wednesday, the actress walked the red carpet using a cane for assistance. She was with her husband, actor-director Stephen Moyer, at the Crosby Street Hotel in New York City for their latest film, A Bit of Light.
“It hasn’t been easy,” Paquin told People of needing a cane to walk and experiencing some difficulties with her speech. The magazine cited a source who says the Oscar and Emmy-winning actress is hoping to make a full recovery.
Anna Paquin attends ‘A Bit Of Light’ New York Screening (Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images)
Despite the physical issues, Paquin is grateful to still be working.
“My first love was independent filmmaking,” said Paquin. “That’s how I entered the film industry. I was working with people who were all about telling stories and telling them with integrity and truth.”
Paquin was directed by husband Moyer in the indie drama, which is based on a stage play.
A Bit of Light stars Paquin as an alcoholic mother who loses custody of her children and has to pick up the pieces of her broken life while reconciling with her past.
She said as a mom she understood that parenthood can be complex, and that women can often be forgotten as fully formed people once they become mothers.
“Not everyone ends up having the journey with motherhood that they have hoped or had planned,” Paquin says. “We’re all flawed and imperfect, and Ella is kind of on some level repeating some sort of familial patterns as far as stuffing feelings down.”
She added, “It’s very relatable because there’s so many ways that people can get in their own way, or sort of learn to cope with trauma.”
A Bit of Light is in theaters Friday, April 5.