Meet Selma Blair’s Siblings: Katherine Beitner, Elizabeth Beitner, and Marie Beitner

Selma Blair, born Selma Blair Beitner on June 23, 1972, in Southfield, Michigan, is an acclaimed American actress celebrated for her iconic roles in Cruel Intentions (1999), Legally Blonde (2001), and the Hellboy franchise.

Known for her resilience, honesty, and grace, Blair has become one of Hollywood’s most admired figures both on and off screen.

Raised in a close-knit Jewish family, she is the youngest of four daughters born to Judge Molly Ann (née Cooke) Beitner and attorney Elliot I. Beitner.

Her father passed away in 2012, and her mother died in 2020. Blair’s three older sisters—Marie, Katherine, and Elizabeth Beitner—have largely chosen to live private lives, but they remain deeply connected to her. After her parents’ divorce when she was 23, Selma and her sister Elizabeth legally changed their surname to “Blair,” marking a new chapter of independence and personal growth.

Growing up in Michigan’s suburbs, Selma attended Hillel Day School and Cranbrook Kingswood School before studying photography at Kalamazoo College (1990–1991). She later earned a Bachelor’s degree in Photography from the University of Michigan in 1994 and pursued acting studies at New York University and the Stella Adler Conservatory.

Now 53 years old, Selma stands 5 feet 4 inches (1.63 m) tall and continues to inspire with her journey through Hollywood and her openness about living with multiple sclerosis, a diagnosis she revealed in 2018.

In her personal life, Blair was married once, to writer and producer Ahmet Zappa from 2004 to 2006. She later welcomed her son, Arthur Saint Bleick (born July 25, 2011), with fashion designer Jason Bleick, her partner from 2010 to 2012.

Over the years, she has been linked to several notable figures, including Jason Schwartzman (2001), Johnny Messner (2006–2008), Mikey Day (2008–2010), David Lyons (2018), and Ron Carlson (2019–2022).

Today, Selma Blair remains single, focusing on her health, motherhood, and creative projects. In her 2022 memoir, Mean Baby: A Memoir of Growing Up, she offers a raw and heartfelt look at her upbringing, career, and struggles, often crediting her sisters for providing unwavering love and strength.

Marie Beitner

Marie “Mimi” Beitner holds the distinction of being Selma Blair‘s eldest sister, setting the tone for the family’s dynamic as the firstborn daughter of Molly and Elliot Beitner.

Born several years before Selma in the late 1960s, Marie grew up in the same Detroit-area home, sharing early years filled with Jewish traditions, family debates on politics—courtesy of their Democratic-leaning father—and the everyday joys of sisterhood.

As the oldest, Marie likely played a protective role in Selma‘s childhood, a theme echoed in Blair‘s memoir, where she describes a household buzzing with the energy of four girls. Unlike Selma‘s trajectory into acting, Marie has embraced a low-profile existence, steering clear of media attention and celebrity circles.

Reports describe her life as “tranquil” and grounded, focused on personal fulfillment rather than public pursuits. She has not pursued a high-visibility career, and little is known about her professional endeavors or family life, which she keeps closely guarded.

This choice underscores a deliberate contrast to Selma‘s Hollywood journey, allowing Marie to serve as a steady, behind-the-scenes supporter. Selma has alluded to her sisters’ role in her MS journey, noting in interviews how Marie and the others provided emotional ballast during treatments and relapses.

In a family where loss and reinvention have been recurring motifs—from their parents’ divorce to health battles—Marie‘s quiet strength appears to be the unspoken glue holding the Beitner women together.

Katherine Beitner

Katherine Beitner, Selma Blair‘s second-oldest sister, brings a touch of the professional world to the family narrative, working as a book publicist in an industry that intersects with Selma’s own creative outlets.

As one of the three older siblings, Katherine shares Selma‘s birth order position in the middle of the pack, born in the early 1970s amid the family’s established life in Southfield.

Growing up, the sisters navigated the rigors of elite schooling together—Hillel Day School for Jewish education and Cranbrook Kingswood for a broader liberal arts foundation—fostering a shared appreciation for intellect and expression that Katherine channels in her career.

Katherine‘s role as a publicist involves promoting authors and titles, a behind-the-curtain gig that demands the charisma and networking savvy Selma displays on screen. Her profession suggests a kinship with Selma‘s storytelling world; after all, Selma herself earned a Grammy nomination in 2020 for narrating The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank, bridging acting and literary advocacy.

During Selma‘s high-profile MS disclosure in 2018, which included the documentary Introducing, Selma Blair (2021), family unity was evident, with Katherine likely among those offering counsel on navigating public scrutiny. In a sibling lineup where Selma is the “baby,” Katherine represents the poised middle ground: accomplished yet understated, a publicist who understands the art of crafting narratives without stealing the spotlight.

Elizabeth Beitner

Elizabeth “Lizzie” Beitner, often called Elizabeth Blair in more recent years, is Selma’s immediate older sister and perhaps her most mirrored counterpart in the family.

As the third-born, Elizabeth arrived in the early 1970s, just a few years ahead of Selma, making their bond particularly tight—forged through shared adolescence and the pivotal decision to adopt the “Blair” surname after their parents’ 1995 divorce.

Selma has detailed this estrangement from their father in her memoir, explaining how Elizabeth‘s solidarity in the name change symbolized a reclaiming of identity amid family upheaval. This act of unity extended to a 12-year silence with their father, broken only later, highlighting Elizabeth‘s role as Selma’s emotional ally.

Like her sisters, Elizabeth maintains a private life away from the entertainment glare, with no public details of her career emerging. Born on December 22 (year unspecified, though fitting the family timeline), her zodiac sign as a Sagittarius aligns with Selma‘s own fiery independence, a trait that may explain their aligned choices in distancing from the Beitner name.

She has not shared updates on partnerships or parenthood. Selma’s tributes to her siblings often lump them together in gratitude, but Elizabeth‘s name change suggests a deeper, twin-like resonance; during Selma’s battles with MS and single parenting her son Arthur Saint Bleick (born 2011), Elizabeth‘s proximity in age likely translated to hands-on empathy.

In Mean Baby, Selma paints a vivid picture of sisterly antics and heartaches, positioning Elizabeth as the one who “gets it” most intuitively—a confidante who mirrors her vulnerabilities while offering an unfiltered perspective.

Selma Blair‘s story is one of triumph over adversity, but it’s her sisters who form the unheralded foundation. Katherine, Elizabeth, and Marie Beitner embody the everyday heroism of family: supportive without fanfare, resilient in silence.