Sia Was “Suicidal” And “Went Into Rehab” Following Backlash To Her Directorial Feature Debut Music

Sia was suicidal and went to rehab following the backlash over her film Music.

The 46-year-old singer — who has complex PTSD — has revealed she relapsed following the controversy surrounding her casting Maddie Ziegler in the titular role of an autistic teenager, instead of someone neuroatypical, in her 2021 directional debut.

In a New York Times profile about her close friend, comedy legend Kathy Griffin, 61, the 'Unstoppable' hitmaker said: “I was suicidal and relapsed and went to rehab.

“She saved my life."

The musician said that Kathy helped her back to life after inviting her to dinner at a restaurant in Hollywood back in November, where the comedienne knew they’d be seen by paparazzi to build better buzz for the pop star.

Chilling out: Kathy Griffin and Sia were seen in good spirits after a late dinner together at Craig's in West Hollywood circa Nov 2021.

The ‘Chandelier’ hitmaker initially cast an actor with autism but the role proved too stressful for her so she brought her frequent collaborator Maddie Ziegle into the project instead.

She said previously “I got Maddie back on board. I’ve learnt I’m ableist.

“And while I may have spoken to 20 factions of the autism community, I didn’t speak to another 20 factions. I actually didn’t even know the other 20 existed.”

Sia has defended her decision to cast Maddie in the film on multiple occasions and previously insisted it was more "compassionate” to hire her than an autistic actress.

She tweeted: "I did try. It felt more compassionate to use Maddie. That was my call...

"I cast thirteen neuroatypical people, three trans folk, and not as f****** prostitutes or drug addicts but s as doctors, nurses and singers. F****** sad nobody’s even seen the dang movie. My heart has always been in the right place.(sic)"

And Sia also insisted she simply couldn't work without Maddie.

She said: “I realised it wasn’t ableism.

“I mean, it is ableism I guess as well, but it’s actually nepotism because I can’t do a project without her. I don’t want to. I wouldn’t make art if it didn’t include her.”

Maddie — who has starred in many of Sia's music videos, including the promos for 'Elastic Heart' and 'Chandelier' — feared people would think she was “making fun” of autistic people.

Sia insisted: “I bold-facedly said, ‘I won’t let that happen.'"

However, she realised she cannot "protect" her from the criticism.

She added: “Last week, I realised I couldn’t really protect her from that, which I thought I could. We sent it off to the Child Mind Institute and she received 100 per cent as performance accuracy. I realise that there are some things I can’t protect her from as much as I try.”

Music picked up two Golden Globe nominations (Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy for Kate Hudson, and Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy. The movie — which scored 7 per cent on Rotten Tomaotes — also has the distinction of being honoured by the Razzies, winning Worst Actress (Kate Hudson), Worst Supporting Actress (Maddie Ziegler), and Worst Director (Sia). — BANG SHOWBIZ

Photos: TPG News/Click Photos