The Inevitable Foundation is urging Hollywood decision-makers to hire people with disabilities to ensure more authentic representation in television and film. (Disability Scoop)
Hollywood could get a big boost if movies and TV shows paid more attention to depictions of disabilities, new data suggests.
A survey of more than 1,000 people – half with disabilities and half without – reveals that 66% of viewers are dissatisfied with current depictions of disability and mental health on screen. And those feelings are affecting decisions about what people watch and which streaming services they choose to subscribe to.
The findings were published this week in a report from the Inevitable Foundation, a nonprofit organization that works to promote writers and filmmakers with disabilities.
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More than a quarter of respondents said they found almost all depictions of disabled people they had seen in the past year to be inauthentic. A similar number said such harmful depictions would lead them to cancel a streaming service.
In contrast, 20% of respondents said they would subscribe to a streaming service and watch more movies if they featured authentic depictions. Similarly, 40% of viewers said they would be very likely to recommend movies and shows with accurate depictions of disabilities or mental health issues to their friends.
The report notes that about 20 million American households have at least one family member with a disability. The survey also found that people with disabilities are already greater consumers of media: 35 percent say they watch 20 or more hours of television a week, compared with just 25 percent of people without disabilities.
“People with disabilities are an incredibly loyal and engaged audience that Hollywood has failed to invest in on a large scale to date,” said Richie Siegel, co-founder of the Inevitable Foundation. “But the audience and opportunity are too big to ignore, given the intense competition for people’s attention and entertainment spending. We hope the report shines a light on this opportunity to give people with disabilities the entertainment options they deserve.”
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