Selena Gomez has praised her “best friend” Francia Raisa for donating her a life-saving kidney in 2017.
Their bond has had its ups and downs, including a vicious feud last year after Selena called Taylor Swift her “only friend in the industry.”
But in a possible signal that they’ve been fixing fences, Selena, 30, gushed about Francia on a new episode of the Apple TV+ series Dear….
“I will never, ever, ever owe anyone more than Francia,” said Selena, who needed the transplant because of her battle with lupus. “The idea of someone not even hesitating to be a donor was incredibly overwhelming.”
She announced the transplant on Instagram in 2017 with a heartwarming snap of her and Francia holding hands as they lay side by side in hospital beds.
Side by side: Selena Gomez has praised her ‘best friend’ Francia Raisa for donating her a life-saving kidney in 2017; They will be pictured later this year. ‘Overwhelming’: ‘I will never, ever, ever owe anyone more than I do with Francia,’ said Selena, who needed the transplant because of her battle with lupus
During the new episode of “Dear…” Selena revealed that Francia herself insisted on getting tested to see if she was able to donate her kidney.
“So within three days she went to do it and she was a match and it was one of those moments where I felt like I was being monitored,” Selena recalled.
“I know I’ve been so, so, so lucky,” she admitted. “I understand that this doesn’t happen to a lot of people and I know the outcome of some of these situations and how serious they are. So I don’t take it lightly that this happened to me.’
The two women then procured matching tattoos for the date of the transplant and cemented their connection as lifelong friends.
Francia, an actress, first met Selena in 2007 when they were teenagers and they immediately developed a close bond.
When Selena’s life was in danger in the midst of her battle with lupus, Francia came to her rescue without hesitation and donated one of her kidneys.
Francia later revealed on the Harry Connick Jr. talk show that she had made a brutal recovery, to the point where she “couldn’t do anything” except “walk” for two months.
A year after the transplant, Selena was spotted partying with friends at the Four Seasons in New York and drinking alcohol.
Remember when: She announced the transplant on Instagram in 2017 with a heartwarming snap of her and Francia holding hands as they lay side-by-side in hospital beds, insisting on being tested to see if she was able to donate her kidney
Rumors swirled that Francia was outraged by Selena’s “unhealthy choices,” leading to an explosive confrontation between the two women.
Then, in October 2018, a month after Selena’s ex Justin Bieber married Hailey Baldwin, Selena reportedly suffered a breakdown related to her lupus.
She immediately sought mental health treatment, after which she and Francia reportedly repaired their friendship.
Tensions between them flared up again last year, however, when Selena released an Apple TV+ documentary called My Mind And Me, in which she spoke at length about her health issues but didn’t even mention Francia.
To add insult to injury, she gave an interview to Rolling Stone where she said her “only friend in the industry really” is Taylor Swift.
Francia commented on Instagram, “Interesting,” and made her feelings clear by unfollowing Selena on the social media platform.
When a TikTok account posted a video of the old friends breaking up, Selena snidely commented, “Sorry I didn’t mention every person I know.”
In a TikTok comment that instantly went viral last month, Selena referred to Taylor, not Francia, as her “best friend.”
Background: Selena and Francia’s bond has had its ups and downs, including a vicious feud last year after Selena called Taylor Swift her “only friend in the industry”.