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Until now. xoJane published this offensive article by "social justice warrior" (see Urban Dictionary's definition) S.E. Smith - Why is Hollywood Still Stubbornly Casting Nondisabled Actors in Disabled Roles?
On the surface, this article raises some really great points. Why aren't more actors with disabilities cast in roles that call for the character to be disabled? A great example is Artie on "Glee." For a show that features so many *different* actors, why wasn't the role of Artie played by an actor who is actually uses a wheelchair? Sure there were a couple of episodes when Artie got up to dance, or tried walking with leg braces, and these episodes could not be played by an actor in a wheelchair. But those episodes or story lines wouldn't have been, or needed to be, included if the actor portraying Artie actually relied on a wheelchair.
Or, as much as I love Matt McGorry (he's seriously the only redeeming thing about "How to Get Away with Murder"), surely there's a fantastic amputee actor out there who would do an excellent job portraying John Bennett on "Orange is the New Black."
S.E. Smith does not use examples likes Artie or John Bennett. Instead, she uses examples like Julianne Moore playing a character with early-onset Alzheimer's in the current film "Still Alice" and Eddie Redmayne portraying Stephen Hawkings in "The Theory of Everything." She basically suggests that these actors should not have been cast, but actors with similar "disabilities" should have played the roles.
UM WHAT?? Hold the phone S.E. This is batty. If you've ever experienced dealing with a loved one who has Alzheimer's or dementia, you would know that suggesting that someone who has dementia should memorize lines, deal with grueling productions hours, and work for months at a time is an INSANE suggestion. My grandmother has Alzheimer's and has been deteriorating for at least 10 years. At first, dealing with a loved one with dementia can have a few funny moments, like talking with my grandmother about her first date with my grandfather (she could remember, as many do in the beginning, details from her past clear as day, while the present was very foggy) while she asks "who's cat is that?" every 5 minutes (mine. We were passing through New Jersey on our way to Connecticut from DC). And hey, my sister and I have gotten out of those awkward "call your grandmother and pass the phone around" holiday phone calls because she doesn't know who we are anymore! But dealing with a loved one with dementia rapidly becomes draining, upsetting, and heartbreaking. Watching someone be frustrated beyond words because they *know* they are forgetting is a pain only less than the pain of *knowing* you're forgetting. My mother basically has a second job caring for my grandmother, making sure she eats and bathes, dealing with her assisted living facility, and protecting my grandmother's assets from those who are low enough scum to prey on people with severe memory loss. You know what the cure for Alzheimer's is? Death. Yup, that's the only way out. And you know what else? Grandma's fairly healthy otherwise, so the poor woman just gets to keep living as her mind keeps dying. She is the shell of a woman who was once a loving grandmother to 18 (I know), an avid traveler, and fiercely independent (she got her license and first job in her 50s/60s, after my grandfather passed away - there was no holding her down once no one was holding her down). She LOVED life, and basically everything has been taken away from her. And don't forget - it's genetic! YAY! To suggest that someone like my grandmother should have played Julianne Moore's role in "Still Alice" is absurd. It never would have been possible, and it probably would have been heartbreaking for the actor if this was attempted.
Let's review S.E.'s other messed up points:
-HOW would anyone with a motor neuron disease been able to portray Stephen Hawking before his disease developed and as it progressed? Stephen Hawking LOVED Eddie Redmayne's portrayal of him. And Redmayne has stated he put his body through so much to play Hawking, he's still suffering from some pain. Yes, let's ask an actor already dealing with this disease to put himself through the ringer!
-As for Jennifer Aniston in "Cake" as a chronic pain sufferer - again, how would an actor with chronic pain deal with being on set working for 12 - 15 hours every day? Many chronic pain sufferers can barely make it through their 8 hour work day sitting. This was one of S.E.'s more "doable" suggestions for me, but it's still a stretch.
-S.E. discusses people who are deaf as having a disability. A lot of people who are deaf do not consider being deaf a disability. Deaf culture is alive and strong. American Sign Language is NOT another form of written or spoken English. It is it's own language with it's own set of rules. To suggest that actors who are deaf automatically consider themselves to have a disability is offensive. And unfortunately, to suggest that actors who are deaf should be considered for any role is just never going to happen. If you watch "Switched at Birth" on ABC Family (more on that show later), you know that actors who are deaf can portray just as much emotion and passion as actors who can speak, but we're just never going to have an actor who is deaf portray Stanley Kowlaski in the infamous "Hey Stella!" scene from A Streetcar Named Desire. Not everyone can play every role.
-S.E. brings up Peter Dinklage. Ya, so a lot of little people don't necessarily identify as being disabled. I agree that we could see more little people in mainstream roles, playing parts that don't necessarily require the actor to be a little person (see Peter Dinklage's role as the sexy nanny on "Nip/Tuck" [ok yes, this role touched on his struggles as a little person and how he views disabilities, but still. He was "allowed" to be more than just a little person]), but there are restrictions that should be acknowledged.
-As for S.E.'s point that productions can be accommodating - look at child actors! - is a stretch. Countless teenage roles are played by adult actors so studios don't have to work around those restrictions. Movies are created to make money. If the choice for the actor to portray Aniston's role in "Cake" is between megawatt, fully abled star Jen who will bring the audience in, and an unknown actor that will need a lot more accommodations, such as time and money costing accommodations like limited hours on set, who would you choose? First and foremost, the movie business is A BUSINESS.
-S.E. repeatedly uses the term "cripface," without explaining it. Commentators have popped up to say the term is an academic one. But for people like me unfamiliar with the term, it comes across as highly offensive. And to compare an actor's thoughtful presentation of a character with a disability - e.g. Tom Hanks as Forrest Gump, or Julianne Moore's character in "Still Alice" - to blackface (designed to be offensive towards black people, I don't need to explain this to you) or yellowface (see Mickey Rooney's stereotypical and highly offensive portrayal of a Japanese person in "Breakfast at Tiffany's"), just does not make sense to me. A lot of comments on S.E.'s article from people with disabilities, black people, and others in the minority stated they were personally offended by S.E.'s use of cripface and the comparison to blackface/yellowface.
-A lot of comments have pointed out how unsettling S.E.'s suggestions are. Should actors with disabilities only portray characters with their same disability? People are so much more than their disabilities, just as I am so much more than my job, or the way I look. And how far should this be taken? Should Bradley Cooper not have played Chris Kyle in "American Sniper" because he doesn't have PTSD? I mean, really. Here's my favorite comment on S.E.'s article:
Listen, I fully, 100% agree we need to see more diversity on television and in movies. One of my favorite films as a child was the 1997 TV movie "Cinderella," starring Brandy as Cinderella, Bernadette Peters as her stepmother (with a white actress and a black actress as her daughters), Whitney Houston as the Fairy Godmother, Filipino actor Paolo Montalban as the Prince, and (white) Victor Garber and (black) Whoopi Goldberg as his parents. This multi-racial cast was part of the reason this movie still holds the record for bestselling video of a made-for-TV movie. We need to see more "color-blind casting," as well as embracing disabilities on screen.
S.E. does not point out any positives or strides Hollywood has made in their article. S.E. does not point out that ABC Family currently has "The Fosters" (white female cop married to black female vice-principal, with a slew of biological, adopted, and foster children who are different ethnicities, one has ADHD, one goes through a phase of selective mutism, and so forth), "Pretty Little Liars" (lesbians, different ethnicities, varied family situations, blindness, etc!), and, most connected to this post, "Switched at Birth." "Switched at Birth" sounds soooooooo stupid (girls who were switched at birth find out when they're 15! The families meet! Drama ensues!), but it's actually an amazing and well-made program that cover such issues as:
-Being deaf and Deaf culture (and issues like to speak or not to speak)
-Death of a parent
-Rich vs. Poor
-Fundamentalist Christianity
-Being bullied for being fat
-Latino culture, and culture in general, asking the difference between being born "technically" fitting in with one culture and being raised in another. Where do you fit?
-Gentrification
-Drug abuse, alcohol abuse
-Life in a wheelchair (featuring the wonderful R.J. Mitte, best known for his role as Walt Jr. on "Breaking Bad," an actor with cerebral palsy)
-Etc, etc, etc. Seriously, etc.
Many shows could take a page out of the "Switched at Birth" book. SAB showcases so many wonderful actors, especially actors who are deaf, like Oscar award winner Marlee Matlin (sidenote - could she be any more gorgeous? UGH), and Sean Berdy, whose acting will make any grown woman fear she's crushing on an 18 year old (guilty. At least he's 21 in real life?) SAB's only flaw? It's one of my "getting ready shows," and I have to constantly rewind because I always forget nearly half of each episode is in sign language. Got to pay attention and read those captions!
Or take a look at Ryan Murphy's body of work. There are lots of criticisms, some true, of Murphy and his representation of the "other", but he does make an effort to cast underrepresented people, from "Glee" to "American Horror Story." Jamie Brewer is an actor with Down Syndrome who has played complicated roles in all three AHS stories, most recently as a ventriloquist dummy who appears to her owner as a living person. We could go into the politics of using a person with Down Syndrome as a doll aka not or less than human, but let's stay positive - this talented actor with Down Syndrome was cast as a character who does not have Down Syndrome. There we go! It's a start, right?
Bottom line - the core of S.E's article is resoundingly true. We need to see more actors with disabilities, actors of color, actors of all shapes & sizes, in mainstream media. But S.E. Smith went about trying to prove this point in the completely wrong way. Her article is under-researched, offensive, insensitive, and just plain ridiculous. Blame should also be placed on xoJane's editors, who published this piece as clickbait. This piece could have been written by a writer who has truly experienced what it's like to be disabled (S.E.'s identifies as disabled, and while I believe you should never question how someone chooses to identify themselves, S.E. tries to speak for everyone in a way that is disingenuous to those who truly know what it's like to experience what it's like to be visibly disabled, or in any minority group), with much better, truer examples. Her point is lost in a confused, unfocused, and often offensive "article." Because of this piece (and for many other reasons - xoJane has been going downhill recently, such as posting an article called "Birth Control 101" that included several WRONG pieces of information), I will no longer be a reader.
Now, who can suggest a women's online magazine? Don't say Jezebel - I don't want to support bullies either. And The Hairpin doesn't always do it for me after "Scandals of Classic Hollywood" author Anne Helen Peterson moved over to Buzzfeed.
I'd like to thank xoJane readers for their thought-provoking comments and outrage at S.E.'s latest piece. I borrowed a few ideas from the smarties over there. I'd also like to apologize for the rambling in this post. I am pissed. I also had to address the many points in S.E.'s unfocused piece. If you made it this far, you get a gold star!
