Photo by Kushagra Kevat from Unsplash
The casting of Cranston to play a disabled character was controversial. According to Statista, the percentage of characters with disabilities shown on broadcast television dropped from 3.5% to 2.8% in 2022.
Of those few portrayals of disabled people, 95% were played by non-disabled actors. Cranston is a well-known actor, though casting a disabled actor could have provided a breakthrough role in a challenging industry while lending greater authenticity to the part.
“Blacking it up” was once used to describe white actors in blackface. Men have been cast to play women, white people to play black people, and non-disabled actors have been “crippling it up” playing disabled roles.
Cranston defends his casting as a performance. Media could more accurately portray disability by considering disabled life experiences. Every industry has standards. But it’s unlikely there are no talented disabled actors. In
The Upside, the story lacked nuance around socioeconomic and racial issues in favor of singling out disability. If a film focuses on disability, why not cast a disabled actor?
“The acting chops of certain cast members were also clearly underutilized. For example, Oscar-winning actress Nicole Kidman played Yvonne, Phillip’s Harvard University-educated business manager, yet her role was plain and her character unexplored.
Despite her impressive educational background, Yvonne essentially played a glorified assistant who mainly served as a love interest to Phillip.” (Brunjes, 6).
Yvonne was just “the White Lady” to Dell. And Phillip struggles to see dating as a possibility at all because of his disability. The story is simply about Phillip being guided by Dell on how to live a whole life.
There’s nothing inherently wrong with the message. The problem is with the casting. Disabled actor-writer Mat Fraser, who played “crippled” Richard III last year, summed it up:
“Ideally, anybody should be able to play anybody, but only when there is a truly level playing field of opportunity.” (The Guardian)
Sources
Brunjes, Alexandra. “Cranston Shines in Remake of ‘The Upside’.” UWIRE Text, 18 Jan. 2019, p. 1. Gale Academic OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A570116350/AONE? u=nysl_oweb&sid=sitemap&xid=0f5ad4e9. Accessed 1 Jan. 2023.
Pepper, P. (2019, January 9). Is it ever OK for non-disabled actors to play disabled roles? The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/society/shortcuts/2019/jan/09/is-it-ever-ok-for-non-disabled-actors-to-play-disabled-roles
Statista. (2022, February). Share of characters with disabilities on broadcast TV from the 2010-11 season to the 2021-22 season. Statista.com. https://www.statista.com/statistics/698132/tv-characters-with-disabilities/