NEWSKelly Osbourne Dropped Out of 'Freaky Friday' Due to Mom Sharon's Cancer Battle: 'It Changed the Whole Trajectory of My Life'
Kelly Osbourne revealed she walked away from 'Freaky Friday' after mom Sharon Osbourne was diagnosed with cancer.
Sept. 18 2026, Published 1:31 p.m. ET
Kelly Osbourne is opening up about the life-changing decision she made when her mom, Sharon Osbourne, was diagnosed with colon cancer.
The 41-year-old revealed she was originally set to appear in 2003's Freaky Friday but walked away from the movie to care for her mother, a choice she said ultimately changed the entire direction of her life and career. Kelly has previously said she moved into the hospital with Sharon and became her full-time caregiver during the frightening period.
Kelly Osbourne Was Cast in 'Freaky Friday'
Kelly Osbourne was originally set to appear in the 2003 comedy 'Freaky Friday' before her family faced a devastating health crisis.
Long before the Disney movie became a beloved comedy starring Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis, Kelly had been tapped to join the cast.
She was reportedly supposed to play one of Lohan's character Anna Coleman's best friends, but her plans changed dramatically when Sharon became ill.
Sharon Osbourne's Cancer Diagnosis Changed Everything
Sharon Osbourne's 2002 colon cancer diagnosis prompted Kelly to put her budding acting career on hold.
Sharon was diagnosed with colon cancer in 2002 and underwent surgery that July. It was later revealed that the cancer had spread beyond her colon after cancerous cells were detected in one of two lymph nodes that had been removed.
For Kelly, pursuing a budding acting career suddenly became far less important than being with her mom.
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Kelly Osbourne chose to step away from the movie so she could focus on caring for her mom during treatment.
Kelly has previously recalled being forced to choose between her career and potentially spending the final days of her mother's life by her side.
"The choice was apparently clear," she told Cosmopolitan in 2013, explaining that she essentially told her career goodbye and became Sharon's "nurse 24/7."
Kelly Osbourne Moved Into the Hospital
Kelly Osbourne previously revealed she practically lived at the hospital while Sharon Osbourne underwent cancer treatment.
Kelly wasn't exaggerating when she said she devoted herself to caring for Sharon.
During a 2011 interview with Piers Morgan, she revealed she actually moved into the hospital while her mother underwent treatment.
"I lived there. I had my own parking space," she recalled, adding that she "turned down my first movie" because she didn't know what was going to happen to Sharon.
Kelly Osbourne Says the Decision Changed Her Life
More than two decades later, Kelly Osbourne said dropping out of 'Freaky Friday' 'changed the whole trajectory' of her life.
More than two decades later, Kelly recognizes just how much walking away from Freaky Friday altered her path.
While the role could have marked the beginning of a very different acting career, caring for Sharon took precedence, and Kelly has continued to speak about how profoundly her mother's illness affected her.
She previously said she doesn't believe she'd be the same person today if her family's experience with Sharon's cancer hadn't unfolded the way it did.
