Film and Disability

The Peanut Butter Falcon is a 2019 American comedy-drama film directed by Tyler Nilson and Michael Schwartz, and starring Shia LaBeouf, Dakota Johnson, John Hawkes, Bruce Dern, Jon Bernthal, and Thomas Haden Church. The film follows Zak (LaBeouf), a young man with Down syndrome who runs away from a residential care facility to pursue his dream of becoming a professional wrestler.

My Left Foot is a 1989 biographical drama film directed by Jim Sheridan and starring Daniel Day-Lewis as Christy Brown, an Irish writer, painter, and poet who had cerebral palsy.

Children of a Lesser God is a 1986 American romantic drama film directed by Randa Haines and starring William Hurt and Marlee Matlin. The film follows James Leeds (Hurt), a speech therapist, and Sarah Norman (Matlin), a deaf woman who works as a janitor at a school for the deaf.

The Theory of Everything is a 2014 biographical drama film directed by James Marsh and starring Eddie Redmayne as Stephen Hawking, a physicist who was diagnosed with ALS at the age of 21.

The Horse Whisperer is a 1998 American drama film directed and produced by Robert Redford, and starring Redford, Kristin Scott Thomas, Sam Neill, Dianne Wiest, and Scarlett Johansson. The film follows Tom Booker (Redford), a horse whisperer who is called to help a young girl (Johansson) who has been traumatized after a riding accident.

Million Dollar Baby is a 2004 American sports drama film directed, co-produced, and written by Clint Eastwood, who also stars in the film alongside Hilary Swank, Morgan Freeman, Jay Baruchel, and Mike Colter. The film follows Frankie Dunn (Eastwood), a retired boxing trainer who reluctantly agrees to train Maggie Fitzgerald (Swank), a young woman who dreams of becoming a professional boxer.

Front of the Class is a 2008 American biographical drama film directed by Peter Werner and starring James Wolk as Brad Cohen, a man with Tourette syndrome who becomes a teacher.

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly is a 2007 French biographical drama film directed by Julian Schnabel and starring Mathieu Amalric as Jean-Dominique Bauby, a man who suffered a stroke that left him paralyzed except for his left eye.

My Left Foot is a 1989 biographical drama film directed by Jim Sheridan and starring Daniel Day-Lewis as Christy Brown, an Irish writer, painter, and poet who had cerebral palsy.

CODA is a 2021 American coming-of-age drama film written and directed by Sian Heder. The film follows Ruby Rossi (Emilia Jones), a CODA (child of deaf adults) who is the only hearing member of her family.

I Am Sam is a 2001 American drama film directed by Jessie Nelson and starring Sean Penn, Michelle Pfeiffer, Dakota Fanning, and Laura Dern. The film follows Sam Dawson (Penn), a man with intellectual disability who raises his daughter Lucy (Fanning) after the death of his wife.

Rain Man is a 1988 American drama film directed by Barry Levinson and starring Dustin Hoffman, Tom Cruise, Valeria Golino, and Gerald R. Molen. The film follows Charlie Babbitt (Cruise), a selfish car salesman who discovers that he has an autistic older brother, Raymond (Hoffman), who is a savant with an exceptional memory.

Murderball is a 2005 American documentary film directed by Henry Alex Rubin and Dana Adam Shapiro. The film follows the lives of four quadriplegic rugby players as they prepare for the 2004 Summer Paralympics in Athens, Greece.

The Sound of Metal is a 2020 American drama film written and directed by Darius Marder and starring Riz Ahmed, Olivia Cooke, Paul Raci, and Mathieu Amalric. The film follows Ruben Stone (Ahmed), a heavy metal drummer who loses his hearing.

Silver Linings Playbook is a 2012 American romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by David O. Russell and starring Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Robert De Niro, Jacki Weaver, and Chris Tucker. The film follows Pat Solitano (Cooper), a man with bipolar disorder who is released from a psychiatric hospital and moves back in with his parents.