Movies (including TV movies) where a non-disabled person plays a disabled person, and cocks it all up; OR an example of a disabled person playing a disabled person, and knocking it out of the park.
Movies (including TV movies) where a non-disabled person plays a disabled person, and cocks it all up; OR an example of a disabled person playing a disabled person, and knocking it out of the park.
- Children of a Lesser God
Marlee Matlin is a deaf actress who won an Oscar for her performance of a deaf person.
Movies (including TV movies) where a non-disabled person plays a disabled person, and cocks it all up; OR an example of a disabled person playing a disabled person, and knocking it out of the park.
- Marlee Matlin - Children of a Lesser God
- Jeff Healey - Road House
Healey, a blind blues singer/guitarist, plays a similar guitarist who leads the house band in the bar.
- Marlee Matlin - Children of a Lesser God
- Jeff Healey - Road House
- Jeffrey Bravin - And Your Name Is Jonah
that’s weird-- I had Jeff up as my first example, and he vanished. He was 8-yrs-old, and not a trained actor when he played the main character in the movie-of-the-week, along with James Woods & Sally Struthers as his parents.
Movies (including TV movies) where a non-disabled person plays a disabled person, and cocks it all up; OR an example of a disabled person playing a disabled person, and knocking it out of the park.
- Marlee Matlin - Children of a Lesser God
- Jeff Healey - Road House
- Jeffrey Bravin - And Your Name Is Jonah
- Tom Sullivan - Airport '77
As I recall, Sullivan, who is blind, played the piano player aboard the privately-owned 747 in the film. He really could play piano; and elsewhere, composed music and sang on a few recordings, making him perfect for the role.
Movies (including TV movies) where a non-disabled person plays a disabled person, and cocks it all up; OR an example of a disabled person playing a disabled person, and knocking it out of the park.
- Marlee Matlin - Children of a Lesser God
- Jeff Healey - Road House
- Jeffrey Bravin - And Your Name Is Jonah
- Tom Sullivan - Airport '77
- Tom Cruise - Born on the Fourth of July
Movies (including TV movies) where a non-disabled person plays a disabled person, and cocks it all up; OR an example of a disabled person playing a disabled person, and knocking it out of the park.
- Marlee Matlin - Children of a Lesser God
- Jeff Healey - Road House
- Jeffrey Bravin - And Your Name Is Jonah
- Tom Sullivan - Airport '77
- Tom Cruise - Born on the Fourth of July
- Darlene Cates - What’s Eating Gilbert Grape
Although she was hired just for her size, the director expanded her role of Mrs. Grape after seeing Cates could act.
Movies (including TV movies) where a non-disabled person plays a disabled person, and cocks it all up; OR an example of a disabled person playing a disabled person, and knocking it out of the park.
- Marlee Matlin - Children of a Lesser God
- Jeff Healey - Road House
- Jeffrey Bravin - And Your Name Is Jonah
- Tom Sullivan - Airport '77
- Tom Cruise - Born on the Fourth of July
- Darlene Cates - What’s Eating Gilbert Grape
- Tony Cox - Bad Santa
I’m not sure if little people are considered disabled or not, but he was fantastic in that movie!
Movies (including TV movies) where a non-disabled person plays a disabled person, and cocks it all up; OR an example of a disabled person playing a disabled person, and knocking it out of the park.
- Marlee Matlin - Children of a Lesser God
- Jeff Healey - Road House
- Jeffrey Bravin - And Your Name Is Jonah
- Tom Sullivan - Airport '77
- Tom Cruise - Born on the Fourth of July
- Darlene Cates - What’s Eating Gilbert Grape
- Tony Cox - Bad Santa
- Sam Claflin - Me Before You
Movies (including TV movies) where a non-disabled person plays a disabled person, and cocks it all up; OR an example of a disabled person playing a disabled person, and knocking it out of the park.
- Marlee Matlin - Children of a Lesser God
- Jeff Healey - Road House
- Jeffrey Bravin - And Your Name Is Jonah
- Tom Sullivan - Airport '77
- Tom Cruise - Born on the Fourth of July
- Darlene Cates - What’s Eating Gilbert Grape
- Tony Cox - Bad Santa
- Sam Claflin - Me Before You
- William Forsythe - The Waterdance
Movies (including TV movies) where a non-disabled person plays a disabled person, and cocks it all up; OR an example of a disabled person playing a disabled person, and knocking it out of the park.
- Marlee Matlin - Children of a Lesser God
- Jeff Healey - Road House
- Jeffrey Bravin - And Your Name Is Jonah
- Tom Sullivan - Airport '77
- Tom Cruise - Born on the Fourth of July
- Darlene Cates - What’s Eating Gilbert Grape
- Tony Cox - Bad Santa
- Sam Claflin - Me Before You
- William Forsythe - The Waterdance
- Harold Russell - The Best Years of Our Lives
Next up:
Actors and actresses who play secondary characters but steal every scene they’re in
- Anthony LaPaglia - Betsy’s Wedding
Hilarious as an aspiring young Mafioso.
Actors and actresses who play secondary characters but steal every scene they’re in
- Anthony LaPaglia - Betsy’s Wedding
- Brad Bird - The Incredibles
The film’s director also served as voice actor for Edna Mode, costume creator for superheroes.
Actors and actresses who play secondary characters but steal every scene they’re in
- Anthony LaPaglia - Betsy’s Wedding
- Brad Bird - The Incredibles
- Stephen Stucker - Airplane!
He played Johnny, the crazy control tower worker. “Oh, it’s a big pretty white plane with red stripes, curtains in the windows and wheels and it looks like a big Tylenol!”
Actors and actresses who play secondary characters but steal every scene they’re in
- Anthony LaPaglia - Betsy’s Wedding
- Brad Bird - The Incredibles
- Stephen Stucker - Airplane!
- Judd Hirsch - The Fablemans
Actors and actresses who play secondary characters but steal every scene they’re in
- Anthony LaPaglia - Betsy’s Wedding
- Brad Bird - The Incredibles
- Stephen Stucker - Airplane!
- Judd Hirsch - The Fablemans
- Sydney Greenstreet - The Maltese Falcon
He did that in pretty much every movie he was in.
Actors and actresses who play secondary characters but steal every scene they’re in
- Anthony LaPaglia - Betsy’s Wedding
- Brad Bird - The Incredibles
- Stephen Stucker - Airplane!
- Judd Hirsch - The Fablemans
- Sydney Greenstreet - The Maltese Falcon
- Judith Anderson - Rebecca
Actors and actresses who play secondary characters but steal every scene they’re in
- Anthony LaPaglia - Betsy’s Wedding
- Brad Bird - The Incredibles
- Stephen Stucker - Airplane!
- Judd Hirsch - The Fablemans
- Sydney Greenstreet - The Maltese Falcon
- Judith Anderson - Rebecca
- Tony Shalhoub - Galaxy Quest
Actors and actresses who play secondary characters but steal every scene they’re in
- Anthony LaPaglia - Betsy’s Wedding
- Brad Bird - The Incredibles
- Stephen Stucker - Airplane!
- Judd Hirsch - The Fablemans
- Sydney Greenstreet - The Maltese Falcon
- Judith Anderson - Rebecca
- Tony Shalhoub - Galaxy Quest
- Winston Duke - Black Panther
“You cannot talk! One more word, and I will feed you to my children. I’m kidding. We are vegetarians.”
Actors and actresses who play secondary characters but steal every scene they’re in
- Anthony LaPaglia - Betsy’s Wedding
- Brad Bird - The Incredibles
- Stephen Stucker - Airplane!
- Judd Hirsch - The Fablemans
- Sydney Greenstreet - The Maltese Falcon
- Judith Anderson - Rebecca
- Tony Shalhoub - Galaxy Quest
- Winston Duke - Black Panther
- Eddie Murphy - The Nutty Professor
Technically, Murphy is the star but in the scenes that feature his family — all played by Murphy, except for Hercules — he steals his show.
Actors and actresses who play secondary characters but steal every scene they’re in
- Anthony LaPaglia - Betsy’s Wedding
- Brad Bird - The Incredibles
- Stephen Stucker - Airplane!
- Judd Hirsch - The Fablemans
- Sydney Greenstreet - The Maltese Falcon
- Judith Anderson - Rebecca
- Tony Shalhoub - Galaxy Quest
- Winston Duke - Black Panther
- Eddie Murphy - The Nutty Professor
- Rupert Everett - My Best Friend’s Wedding
Early test audiences responded so well to his character, IIRC, that the part was expanded.
Pass.