“I wasn't born with an inbuilt
understanding of many things neurotypical people
take for granted.” Film and TV have a long history
of failing to portray neurodiverse characters with
accuracy, nuance and respect. But in recent years,
as our society comes to understand
a lot more about how neurodiversity manifests, onscreen portrayals are at last
improving to more authentically represent and empower
those in the neurodiverse community. “Matilda is 17
she's a high school senior, she's musically talented
and she has autism and like me
I also have autism as well.” Looking across a range of examples,
we can observe some salient patterns in how neurodiversity
tends to be featured on Film and TV:
 Neurodiverse characters
are frequently driven. Research shows that those
on the autism spectrum have increased capacity
for extended focus, as well as hyperfocus,
where they zero in on an interest and lose track
of everything else going on around them. “The incision should
take place two ribs down.” And neurodiverse characters
often channel that focus and drive in order to be
successful in highly competitive fields. They tend to see
the world differently. “How did it get
into our systems? How?” “Get out, I need to go
to my mind palace.” They can use their
unique perspective to solve complex problems
and think outside the box, which gives them
an advantage over neurotypical thinking. “These are latitudes
and longitudes. They appear to be
routing orders across the border
into the US.” “Extraordinary.” Still, film and TV
sometimes overemphasize these traits to a degree
which might lead audiences to falsely imagine
that all neurodiverse people are autistic savants —
characters who lack social skills but are geniuses
in one specific area. “What do I have left?” “Two jacks, one eight,
one king, one six, two aces, one ten,
one nine, one five.” Neurodiverse characters
are often framed as the odd one out — presented as the single neurodivergent
in a group of neurotypicals. “Abed, your social skills
aren’t exactly streets ahead, know what I mean?” “I don’t.” On the one hand
this story structure can celebrate what
makes them unique, but it can also be othering,
putting the focus on how their neurodiversity impacts
people around them instead of what their
experience is. “dad’s dead,
dad’s dead, dad’s dead,
dad’s dead...” “Arnie shut up!” “Stop it!” But nuanced portrayals
of neurodiverse characters aim to put us
in their shoes and give us a window
into how they experience the world
differently. “I love the way the paint
squishes in my fingers.” “Ehhh.” “Ooh. Oh you’re right.
I’m sorry Julia, I know you don’t like
the way it feels.” Maybe the biggest factor
in improving the portrayal of neurodiverse characters
is the term “neurodiversity” itself, which refers to variation
in the human brain regarding the way we learn,
socialize, focus, and do other
mental functions. Judy Singer,
an autistic sociologist, coined it in the late 90s
to challenge the idea that Autism Spectrum Disorder
diagnoses are disabilities, or that they need to be cured. “Neurodiversity is the concept
that neurological differences between people should be
recognised and respected.” Here’s our take on
our evolving understanding of the neurodivergent character,
and why film and TV must use their power
to show us how thinking and behaving differently
isn’t a problem that needs to be fixed. “In some circumstances
it can definitely be an advantage.” “To be neurodiverse, because that makes
you different, that makes you
think differently.” Looking back at
early representations of neurodivergent characters
on screen can feel uncomfortable. “You were born perfect
and I was born like this.” Many of those portrayals
can be patronizing, and represent a very
narrow view of what neurodiversity is like. They frequently make
neurodivergent characters non-verbal, to the extent that they
can’t communicate any emotion at all — turning them into puzzles
for a neurotypical character to solve, “What are you seeing in there?” or depicting them as
basically unaware of their surroundings. “Is he ok?” “Moo moo here
and moo, moo, moo! Moooo!” “He’s been very
happy here Mr. Mckay.” “I guess ignorance
is bliss right?” In the context of their times,
some of these film’s representations could actually be groundbreaking. Talking about 1988’s Rain Man,
one of the first films to centre a neurodivergent protagonist
and specifically name the condition as autism,
Ali Vaux says that, “To even suggest that Raymond
was a human with basic dignity was a really big deal.” “What I said about
being on the road with you I meant,
connecting. I like having you for my brother.” But by today’s standards,
most past iconic films about neurodiverse characters
contain elements that come off as cringeworthy
or offensive — "Piggy back ride!
Piggy back. Piggy back ride!” and the same goes for
critical conversations around the films. Roger Ebert’s review of Rain Man,
while positive and empathetic overall, opened by asking: “Is it possible to have a
relationship with an autistic person? Is it possible to have
a relationship with a cat?” Todd McCarthy’s 1994 review
of Forrest Gump describes Gump as a
“semi-imbecile” and a “part Dustin Hoffman
might once have killed for.” “I’m not a smart man
but I know what love is.” While Ed Potton’s 1980 review
of Being There used the ignorant descriptor
of “idiot savant.” “Shortchanged by the Lord
and dumb as a jackass.” “Look at him now.” Rain Man’s Raymond Babbitt
is the most iconic example of the prevalent cinematic trend
of overwhelmingly representing the neurodivergent character
as a brilliant autistic savant. “How much is 4343 x 1234?” “5359262.” “He’s a genius.” “That’s right.” Raymond can count cards
and solve complex math problems in his head, but struggles with everyday elements
of numeracy and social expectation. “Ray, do you know how much candy bar cost?” “About 100 dollars.” Before Raymond,
The Boy Who Could Fly’s Eric also put forward this
representation of autistic people as extraordinary — instead of being mathematical,
Eric’s savant abilities are fantastical, in that he can actually fly. “You caught me,
didn't you? You can fly.” Yet the film still suggests
that Eric’s autism is something we should look to cure. [ “Miss Sherman,
she used to teach those kinda kids, and she thinks that
maybe being around normal people will
help them or something.” Autistic savants — who make up around
10% of all autistic people — are overrepresented
in pop culture. They're treated almost
as a white equivalent to the magical minority trope
in depictions that other them while suggesting they can
offer mystical insights that will revolutionize
other people’s outlooks. “It is only in the
mysterious equations of love that any logical reasons
can be found.” Even when they’re
the main character, the neurodivergent character
in all these portrayals is there to help
neurotypical people learn something. Raymond is there to help
Charlie grow as a person. “It's, it's got your cheeseballs on it,
your apple juice, notebooks, pens and
Who's On First video.” Eric uses his flying ability
to help Milly realise the importance of faith, “Can you really fly Eric?” and Chance The Gardener
in Being There (who was read as neurodivergent
despite not being diagnosed within the film) inspires his entire nation
after his words about gardening are misinterpreted by the President as
nuanced political and economic advice. “As long as the roots
are not severed all is well, and all will be well
in the garden.” “We welcome the
inevitable seasons of nature, but we're upset by
the seasons of our economy.” Neurodiverse characters
are often there to share their understated wisdom
with the audience as well. In Forrest Gump —
whose protagonist is again never diagnosed beyond
being evaluated for his IQ “Your boy's different,
Mrs. Gump. Now, his IQ is 75.” Forrest’s simplicity allows him
to find beauty in the world that the other characters
can’t see, and his uncomplicated
perspective on life is held up as something
we should learn from. “Were you scared in Vietnam?” “Sometimes it would stop raining
long enough for the stars to come out. Then it was nice.” Even at their most compassionate
these portrayals can present neurodivergence
in an oversimplified one-dimensional way
and risk making the neurodivergent character
the punchline. “Oh he was very clever,
keeping it at a third grade level. That’s what they understand.” Because the focus
on these stories is overwhelmingly on how the neurodiverse character
impacts others, when they’re not being
a magical helper the film might encourage
a lot of audience sympathy for the neurotypical people
who have to deal with these characters’ needs. “You and I are gonna
get on this f****** plane.” (screaming) “Ray, Ray, Ray
we’re not gonna take the plane.” “You tire me, Ray.” In What’s Eating Gilbert Grape,
Arnie is loved by his family but he is still presented
as a burden — and his narrative purpose
is to create obstacles for Gilbert’s character arc. “Arnie could go at any time,
some days you want him to live, some days you don’t.” There are some outliers
in early representations of neurodivergent people
that attempt to show them in a more complex,
less tokenistic way. The 1989 documentary
John’s Not Mad, following a young boy
with tourette’s syndrome, shows a number of
different sides to tourette’s and allows him to talk
about the condition for himself. “When I feel I'm
going to say it I try and stop myself,
but it just feels if I have to say it. It's just like somebody’s
forcing it out.” As illustrated by its title,
John’s Not Mad attempted to break down
the stigma around neurodivergence, and promote understanding,
rather than pity. Contemporary depictions
of neurodivergent characters can’t get away with the
narrow portrayals of past films — in large part because
there are more actual, high-profile people
speaking publicly about their neurodiversity
than ever before. “I’m actually making history tonight
as the first person with asperger’s to host SNL,
or at least the first to admit it.” Greta Thurnberg has credited
her rare drive and sense of purpose
in climate activism to her different way
of seeing things; “I saw the world
from a different perspective, so I saw what
was wrong with the world.” Hannah Gadsby has used
her diagnosis for comedic material; “To give you an idea
of what it feels like to be on the spectrum
basically it feels like being the only sober person
in a room full of drunks.” and Anthony Hopkins
has credited his neurodivergence with helping his acting,
saying: “I definitely look
at people differently. I like to deconstruct,
to pull a character apart, to work out what
makes them tick and my view will not
be the same as everyone else.” Documentary filmmaking
has led the charge in representation for neurodivergent characters
on screen, doing much to counter
the harmful stereotypes once widely perpetuated
by fiction films. One outdated trope
of neurodivergent characters is that they’re not interested
in romantic relationships, “Have you ever kissed a girl?” “I don’t know.” “How was that?” “Wet.” but Aspie Seeks Love
challenges that by focusing on
author David Matthews’ trials in the world of online dating. “Even near hermits,
such as yours truly, crave personal contact.” Another outdated trope
is that neurodivergent people don’t have a sense of humor,
something that is expertly disproven in Asperger’s Are Us. “It’s true we’re the first comedy troupe
composed of people on the autism spectrum.” “So if we’re not funny,
blame it on Ethan’s disability.” In fiction,
neurodivergent protagonists have found a home
in the detective genre, thanks to the legacy
of Sherlock Holmes. “I play the violin
when I'm thinking and sometimes I don't
talk for days on end. Would that bother you? Potential flatmates should
know the worst about each other.” Sherlock’s powers
of deduction and his
photographic memory are both commonly
thought of as autistic traits. “His watch?” “The time was right
but the date was wrong. It was set two days ago,
crossed the date line twice and he didn’t alter it.” Even his lack of social skills
and empathy (also commonly linked
to Autism Spectrum Disorders) become useful to his profession,
as they give him the ability to focus on the task at hand. “Five.” “It's speeding up.” “Sherlock!” “Four.” “Oh in the planetarium
you heard it too. Oh that is brilliant,
that is gorgeous.” But while Sherlock
is a beloved character whose stories arguably
even glorify neurodivergent traits, he is still subtly othered —
painted more like a magical superhero than a fleshed-out person
with needs, and occasionally referred to
as inhuman or robotic by the neurotypical people
around him. “Why am I the only one
who thinks that this is wrong? The only one reacting
like a human being?” In that sense,
Sherlock represents a bridge between older and newer
understandings of neurodivergence. He’s afforded more agency,
independence and dignity than many previous autistic
or autistic coded characters, but still strays into
the autistic savant trope. “You said you could
identify a software designer by his tie
and an airline pilot by his left thumb.” “And I could read your military career
by your face and your leg and your brother’s drinking habits
by your mobile phone.” A less fantastical portrayal
of an autistic detective can be seen in Danish series
The Bridge’s Saga Noren (who’s not diagnosed
within the show, but in the words of
actress Sofia Helen, “To me she has Asperger's.” “The spasms suggest
an alkaloid, the rigor mortis
implies strychnine.” “Get yourself a hobby.” “What?” Whereas Sherlock’s coldness
sometimes manifests as comedic and his intelligence
as superhuman, Saga is more down to earth. “A shoeprint, size 9.
I haven’t identified the make yet.” “Let’s bring in all men
that take size 9. That was a joke.” “Yes, I got that.” She also disproves the assumption
that autism only affects men. Modern neurodivergent characters
can still fall into outdated stereotypes, showing that our
mainstream understanding still has some ways to go. Sia’s Music was
heavily criticised for including scenes where its
neurodivergent protagonist is restrained —
a practice now considered to be abusive
within the autism community — and for using a
neurotypical actor to play a non-verbal,
neurodivergent part. “That really speaks to a kind of
patronizing view of autism and the idea that we
shouldn’t be the people telling our own stories.” The lead actress
also imitated stimming and facial expressions
that were meant to make her
look autistic, much like in outdated films
from decades earlier. While there’s a long tradition
of neurotypical actors being highly praised
and winning top awards for their performances as
neurodiverse people, we now understand that
this practice is damaging and even some have
termed it “cripface.” “All these really meaty roles
that are winning awards for autistic characters,
autistic actors have never been included
in that process.” Claire Bennett writes
that it, “suggests that disability is
an identity that can be temporarily assumed for the purpose
of entertaining people. In the best scenarios,
it has mocking undertones. In the worst,
it devalues disabled peoples’ very existence.” “Can we try
not to have one of your freakouts
up there, alright?” Even Netflix’s Atypical,
which began in 2017, was criticized for casting
a neurotypical actor to play its protagonist,
Sam, who’s on the
autism spectrum. “The reason prey animals
hang around with a pack is for safety,
so they don’t get eaten. And I was feeling like
a prey animal with no pack.” However, Atypical listened
to the criticism, and in the second season
did cast neurodiverse actors in the roles of
Sam’s support group. “It's about the autism community
so I wanted as much involvement from the Autism community
as possible. And I loved the idea
of this peer group.” Kayla Cromer,
who stars in Everything’s Gonna Be Okay,
recently became the first actress with autism
to portray a lead character with autism on
American TV. “I have autism,
my dad's biggest regret is vaccinating me,
that’s a joke.” These are significant steps
toward widespread authentic representation,
because even the most well-intended neurotypical actors will never
truly know what it’s like to be neurodivergent. The concept of a headcanon,
born out of fan-fiction, has been adopted by
the neurodivergent community to reclaim characters
who present as neurodiverse, even when they don’t have
an official diagnosis in the story. “I get that they probably weren’t
written with autism in mind.” “I think it can only be
a good thing to try and hijack a few characters
who I really think were on the spectrum.” This exercise of identifying
neurodivergence where it was previously overlooked
also speaks to our growing understanding that it isn’t all non-verbal,
challenging behavior, and is instead
truly a broad spectrum. Grey’s Anatomy’s Cristina Yang
frequently gets diagnosed as neurodiverse, “That’s a cute baby right?” “Its small features
and over-sized eyes trigger a hormonal response
in humans. It's autonomic. It's what keeps us
from eating them.” with neurodiverse author
Holly Smale citing reasons like Cristina’s hyperfocus,
her struggle to connect with anyone who isn’t Meredith,
and the way she masks her true personality,
or puts effort into presenting as neurotypical,
when she’s with Dr Burke. The show briefly touches
on the question but never formally
diagnoses her. “When someone's really smart,
like a genius, but they're a little different,
like they don't know how to talk to people?” “Are you asking me
if I'm autistic?” Yet it presents her
neurodiverse traits as just one part
of a complex person. “Pretty good is not enough,
I wanna be great.” Tina Belcher in Bob’s Burgers
is another character whose show questions
whether she may be autistic. “I’m autistic.” “Bob...” “Just a sec.
No, you’re not autistic Tina.” In the neurodiverse community,
Tina’s frequent moans and groans have been identified
as a kind of stimming, a repetitive, self-stimulating behavior
that neurodiverse people exhibit when bored, nervous,
or tense. “Tina I’ll be right back.” “Uhhhhh.” Community’s Abed has also
been read as on the autism spectrum thanks to his hyper-focused interest
in and knowledge of TV and film, “Abed what are you doing?!” “Don Draper from Mad Men.
What’d you think?” as well as his
challenges with social cues. “Is this a social cue?” Abed has been embraced
by so much of the neurodiverse community
because his passions and style of self-expression
are encouraged by and shared with
his friends. “Can I ask you something I always
wanted to ask the real Batman?” “Yeah.” “Am I good looking?” “You’re a very
attractive young man.” Also, while he does display
extraordinary powers of recall and knowledge of pop culture,
he isn’t a superhuman success, so he doesn’t fall into
pop culture’s reductive stereotype of the autistic savant. “Wanna watch a movie?” “Sure. Aliens, cyborgs, or zombies?” Brooklyn 99 has been credited
not only for creating characters who read as neurodivergent,
but also making those characters people of color,
who often go underrepresented in discussions of neurodivergence. “Hey what’s your handle?
I’ll be your first follower.” “It’s @ 5261796D6E
6420486F6C74.” Captain Holt’s strict sense of order,
his flat-speaking delivery, and his sensory avoidance
when it comes to food, “I have zero interest in food,
if it were feasible my diet would consist of flavourless
beige smoothies containing all the nutrients
required by the human animal.” are all signifiers of ASD,
while Amy Santiago’s love of organizing
and structure have also been read as
neurodiverse traits. “There’s a magazine
about organizing?” “Yeah, I want to be featured
as organizer of the month.” Both of these characters
are celebrated for their differences and respected as mentors
who have a lot to teach others
in their workplace. “I followed you because
you're great and because you make
everything you touch better.” Looking back a little further,
2001’s Amelie is another character who’s been
embraced by the autistic community for her hyperfocus,
difficulty reading social cues, and hypersensitivity. “He is going to put
down his spoon… Dip his finger
in the sugar…” We can see signs
of neurodiversity in Shawshank Redemption’s
Andy Dufresne, who exhibits hyperfocus
with his accountancy and his meticulous plan
to escape prison, and struggles to
connect with people. “My wife used to say
I’m a hard man to know, like a closed book.” While Andy may not find it easy
to immediately bond with others in a conventional way,
his different way of viewing the world radically inspires
the other men in the prison and improves their lives
in lasting ways. “Get busy living,
or get busy dying.” “Get busy living,
or get busy dying.” To Kill a Mockingbird’s
misunderstood recluse Boo Radley has recently been read
as an undiagnosed neurodivergent person
who’s treated poorly by his community
due to his difference. And a study from
the Canadian Medical Journal theorised that in
the Winnie the Pooh stories, all the inhabitants of the
Hundred Acre Wood exhibit some form of neurodiversity,
from Tigger’s ADHD, “They're bouncy, trouncy,
flouncy, pouncy Fun, fun, fun, fun, fun!” to Rabbit’s narcissistic
personality disorder, “Your detailed list of chores
and duties, I’ve got it right here.” to Piglet’s anxiety disorder. “Oh dear, I'm a goner!
Ahhh!” “You act like I'm going
to cook you for dinner.” “Aren't you?” “Why of course not!” While some object
to this kind of “armchair diagnosis” of fictional creations,
if there is a character who a lot of neurodiverse people
recognize themselves in, then maybe it doesn’t matter
what the author’s intention was. It’s ironic that in trying
to create distinctive and lovable characters,
writers often code them as neurodivergent
without necessarily intending to. “Every Saturday since we’ve
lived in this apartment, I have awakened at 6:15,
poured myself a bowl of cereal, added a quarter cup
of two percent milk, sat on this end of this couch,
turned on BBC America and watched Doctor Who.” This shows that deep down,
we know that differences are what make people unique,
special, and interesting. On the other hand,
when the writing doesn’t explicitly say that “different” characters
are neurodiverse, and sets them apart mainly via
their refined skills or intelligence, the narrative isn’t consciously
pushing us to expand our perspective on what we consider
acceptable differences. The success that can come
with hyperfocus is already sought after in a lot of ways,
and it’s important to also show the less romanticized aspects
of neurodiversity in order to destigmatize them. (Inaudible) Moreover, if creatives can
get away with simply implying that a character may be neurodiverse,
then they do not need to be held accountable for
the lack of neurodiverse writers and talent hired to create
and portray that character. This situation can end up
perpetuating misunderstandings about neurodivergence
and continuing the one-dimensional representation
or harmful stereotypes of the past. “Arnie’s a real instinctive character.
He acts a lot on what’s directly in front of him. He doesn’t have a lot of
necessarily deep thoughts about life.” So as empowering as it can be
to reclaim neurodiverse-presenting characters,
it’s also important not to accept headcanon representation
as enough and keep pushing
for intentional representation. “My DMs constantly blow
up from little kids, teens...” “...Just saying how grateful they are
to be actually, be seeing finally something authentic on screen.” While thoughtful neurodivergent
visibility is still lacking in most mainstream media,
important new representations are forming. “Your son has the same desire
to be loved that we all do.” Sesame Street’s introduction
of an autistic character, Julia, will allow people to understand
autism from a young age, “What's autism?” “Well for Julia,
it means that she might not answer you right away.” while shows like
Everything’s Going To Be Okay and films like Keep The Change
are centering neurodiverse people in front of
and behind the camera. “Today he's making history
as the creator of the first ever American tv series to star
an autistic actress in a leading role.” “And last month Josh
made headlines when he announced that
he himself is autistic, discovering his diagnosis
while writing the show.” The documentary The Reason I Jump,
based on the book of the same name
by Naoki Higashida, has also been heralded
as breaking new ground in depictions of autism,
as it attempts to evoke the lived experience of non-verbal
autistic people through immersive sound, and a specific cinematic language. “My mind is forever swaying,
this way and that.” With more neurodiverse protagonists
and a broader range of accurate portrayals of the neurodiverse community,
people’s headcanons can become actual canon,
and representation can grow beyond the stereotypes. “I can’t think of anything
better than that.”
Yea misrep confirmed
Good show. Shows how much our prejudices have changed over the years, if not decades.
We still have a long way to go, & still have to fight against harmful stereotypes, but the fight has begun at least.
Media reflects the society it was made in, & as attitudes towards ASD change IRL, so representation will change in films & shows.
Abed looks so perfect in the thumbnail.
Also, theres new episodes of Atypical. I actually really like that show. Sam is a bit over-the-top, but hes also relatable. And season 5 hasnt gotten an out loud laugh out of me more than once.
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