Over the past few years, there has been a large push for a wider range of representation in movies and television. More importantly, accurate representation. In particular, the Deaf community has been advocating for more Deaf roles in mainstream media. We are finally beginning to see the emergence of Deaf characters played by Deaf actors and actresses. For example, there have been a few popular movies - “CODA”, “Eternals” and “A Quiet Place”, showcasing Deaf actors and Deaf culture. These movies have highlighted Deaf actors, such as Marlee Matlin - who has acted around for over 3 decades, but also given the spotlight to up-and-coming actors such as Millicent Simmonds in “A Quiet Place” and Lauren Rindloff in “Eternals”.
Why is representation important?
Having characters and actors who authentically represent those with disabilities is important for awareness, representation, and diverse stories in the Deaf community and hearing world. They promote awareness to hearing audiences by exposing them to Deaf culture and ASL. Shows and movies showcasing the experiences of Deaf people can help hearing people understand the barriers the Deaf community faces, especially if they have never interacted with someone who is Deaf before. They are also extremely important for people who are Deaf and Hard of Hearing to see themselves represented in film. Having actors or actresses who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing shows others that they can also become an actor or achieve any goal they wish. Additionally, it lets people who are Deaf and Hard of Hearing feel understood by having their experiences be portrayed through film.
Accurate representation in movies
Recently, we’ve seen Deaf representation in “CODA” and “A Quiet Place”. “CODA”, which stands for Child Of Deaf Adult is an adaptation of the French movie, “The Belier Family”. It is a story about a hearing child with Deaf parents and a Deaf sibling. Unfortunately, “The Belier Family” does not have all of the Deaf characters played by Deaf actors, but “CODA” does. Not only does it showcase Deaf actors and actresses, but it also shows the Deaf community and their everyday challenges and laughs from having a Deaf parent. For example, having to interpret for their parent’s doctor appointment about their intimate life.
“A Quiet Place” was an important mainstream media movie that used ASL to communicate in a silent world. Millicent Simmonds, a Deaf actress, plays the Deaf daughter in the movie. This casting was really important since John Kransinski, the director and starring role of the movie said that from the beginning he knew he wanted a Deaf actor as the movie heavily relied on ASL as its main form of communication. Millicent's exceptional performance gained her a lot of attention and potential roles. Recently, there has been some discussion in the Deaf and the Deaf-Blind communities about Millicent’s role in, “Helen and Teacher”, where she plays Helen Keller, a famous Deaf-Blind woman. There were some people happy for her to be playing this role, especially since she is a relative of Helen, but there was also controversy because a Deaf-Blind actor wouldn’t be playing this part. Loni Friedman, who is Deaf-Blind and an advocate on social media, expressed her frustration with Millicent landing this role. She called out the hypocrisy saying that this is the same with hearing people playing Deaf roles. She says in a post, “If Deaf-Blind roles happen, allow Deaf-Blind people to take these roles. I feel extremely wrong how that role is being taken over. Deaf people do not understand what it is like being Deaf-Blind. How can a Deaf sighted person understand this?”. This would have been a great opportunity for an actor or actress who is Deaf-Blind to land a role in a major film, reaching a large audience and gaining themselves great exposure. Millicent responded to these calls of frustration saying that she understands the concerns of her playing a Deaf-Blind character. Despite this, she will still continue to immerse herself in the role and gain insight into the life of people who are Deaf-Blind by speaking to them and learning tactile ASL. There was a similar outcry from Sia’s movie, “Music”, starring Maddie Ziegler, who plays the part of a non-verbal autistic teenager. Since this movie had Sia, Kate Hudson, and Maddie Ziegler, it drew a large audience, but criticism ensued. Just like Millicent is not Deaf-Blind, Maddie is not autistic. Many felt her portraying this character was insensitive and ableist since there are many autistic actors and actresses that could play this part, but Sia felt Maddie was the best fit. If you’re interested in further explanation on why the Sia movie is so controversial, check out the article below:
Authentic and diverse representation is something needed across a wide variety of platforms. Movies and television are designed to tell stories. What better way to tell the stories of individuals who are Deaf and Deaf-Blind than allowing them to tell their own stories. It’s time that there are more Deaf and Deaf-Blind roles in movies played by actors and actresses who are Deaf or Deaf-Blind.
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