In the world of movies, tv shows, books, comic books, etc. how many characters can you name with physical disabilities/using mobility devices? Name as many as you can, but I’m personally looking out for chicks in wheelchairs, preferably of color, and bonus points if they’re queer.
Edit – So here’s what I have so far (bolding anyone who is not a white cisguy)
- Dr. Scott – Rocky Horror Picture Show | Movie | wheelchair
- Artie Abrahams- Glee | TV Series | wheelchair
- Quinn Fabray (shortly) – Glee
| TV Series | wheelchair
- Barbara Gordon/Oracle – Batman
| Comic Book | wheelchair
- Lt. Dan – Forrest Gump
| Movie | wheelchair
- Jake Sully- Avatar
| Movie | wheelchair
- Joe Swanson – Family Guy
| TV Series | wheelchair
- Dr. Finklestein – Nightmare Before Christmas
| Movie | wheelchair
- Toothless, Hiccup, Gobber- How To Train Your Dragon
| Movie | prosthesis
- Professor X- X-Men
| Movie | wheelchair
- Daredevil- Daredevil
| TV Series | walking stick
- Walter White Jr. – Breaking Bad
| TV Series | crutches
- Raven Reyes – The 100
| TV Series | leg brace
- Jimmy- Degrassi
| TV Series | wheelchair
- Arizona Robbins – Grey’s Anatomy | TV Series| prosthesis
Imperator Furiosa- Mad Max: Fury Road | Movie/Book| prosthesis
- Gregory House – HOUSE M.D. | TV Series | cane
- Frida Kahlo- Frida | Movie | cane, wheelchair
- Karma – X-Men | Comic Book | prosthesis
- John Bennet | Orange is the New Black |TV Series| prosthesis
I’m a 90s Kid, so Marissa Clark from the series Early Edition (1996-2000) springs to mind. She was a WOC and she’d been blind since she was a baby due to meningitis, so she used a walking stick and seeing eye dog. She wasn’t the star of the show, but she was the second character after the lead.
Geordi La Forge from Star Trek: Next Generation (1987-1994). A MOC and blind since birth, but due to living in the far future he used a VISOR (Visual Instrument and Sensory Organ Replacement). Again, not the star of the show, but he was one of the main cast members and he went on to appear in other Star Trek films, novels, comics, etc…
Fiona Bellows from the Doctor Who episode “Last Christmas” (2014). She is a white grandmother in a wheelchair, though most of the episode took place in dream layers where she dreamed herself being able to walk. She was a guest star in the episode.
Casey Durwin from Terra Nova (2011). He was in a motorized wheelchair because he’d lost both his legs in a Carnotaurus attack. He was white.
Campbell from Switched at Birth (2014). He suffered a spinal
injury, so he was in a wheelchair. He was a recurring character for a
short period and dated Daphne. He was white.Book!Peeta Mellark from The Hunger Games series (2008-2010).
Although not represented in the film version, Peeta had his left leg
amputated as a result of the Hunger Games and had to use a prosthetic.
He was white, a main character, and one of Katniss’ love interests.Daphne Vasquez from Switched at Birth (2011-Present). She was born to white parents but switched at birth and raised by a Latina mother and grandmother, believing they were her biological family until she was in her mid-teens. At age three she got meningitis and became Deaf. So she doesn’t use any mobility devices (so I’m not sure if she or any of the other Deaf characters work for your list), but she does use hearing aids and interpreters. She is one of the two stars of the show.
Since Deaf Culture is a huge part Switched at Birth, there are several Deaf characters on the show with fairly regular roles:
- Emmett Bledsoe (2011-Present) is another main cast member. He’s white.
- Melody Bledsoe (2011-Present) is a significant recurring character. She’s white.
- Travis Barnes (2012-Present) is a recurring character. He’s white.
- Natalie Pierce (2013-Present) is a recurring character. She’s Latina and a lesbian.
Gabriella from The Little Mermaid: The Series (1993-1994). She was a Deaf WOC with a recurring role.
Book!Katniss Everdeen from The Hunger Games series (2008-2010). Although not
represented in the film version, Katniss was a WOC and becomes deaf in
her left ear as a result of the Hunger Games. She was the star character of the series,Dr. Emma Coolidge from Heroes (2009-2010). She was a Deaf white woman with the ability of synesthesia. She was a recurring character in the final season.
Oooh, I have a few-
1) Ada Gillyflower from the Crimson Horror episode of Doctor Who, she was blind and used a stick.
2) Another blind character from Doctor Who, Mickey’s grandmother Rita-Ann. She’s not actually named in the show but she has an important scene with Mickey.
3) Maybe Nick Fury from the MCU?
4) Tariq Siddiqui from the magnificently bad Waterloo Road, a Muslim teen whose legs were damaged in a bus crash. He used a wheelchair and I think he eventually joined the Paralympics canoe team in-show?
5) Dr. Hermann Gottlieb from Pacific Rim, he using a walking stick.
6) Last but not least, Tahl from the Star Wars YA series Jedi Apprentice. She’s a dark-skinned, stripey-eyed human (technically a Noorian) who is blind and has a ‘personal navigation droid’ as assistive technology