The Marvel Cinematic Universe introduced its first deaf superhero on November 5th when The Eternals premiered in theaters.
The MCU has been working to improve the diversity among its cast of superheroes in recent years, and the inclusion of a deaf superhero will undoubtedly serve as a meaningful representation for deaf and hard-of-hearing youth.
The film has been praised for portraying a well-rounded and developed deaf character rather than making her deafness the focal point of the character.
They also cast a deaf actress for the role, as many film fans and industry professionals have encouraged studios to cast disabled actors in disabled roles. This film in particular also showed a deaf person-of-color in a leading role. Intersectionality is important in media representation. The industry has been criticized for centering most depictions of people with disabilities around white characters.
The Eternals highlights how disabled representation in film media is improving. However, the movie theatre viewing experience still leaves a lot to be desired for people with disabilities.
Growing media representation
While this is the first deaf character in the MCU, the deaf and hard of hearing community has seen an increase in media representation recently.
Only Murders In The Building on Hulu recently premiered a largely silent episode centered around a deaf character, who was played by deaf actor James Caverly. The episode has been praised for showcasing a complex and flawed character with a disability. Often characters with disabilities are written to be idealized or overly innocent in a manner that detracts from their depth and character development.
A Quiet Place II premiered in May. The movie features a family with a deaf daughter living in a world where scary creatures use their highly sensitive hearing to attack humans. The film features minimal dialogue and incorporates ASL.
The film and television industries have been making strides in providing greater disability representation - and actually casting disabled actors in these roles. However, disabled viewers still report challenges.
The Eternals impact on film accessibility
Marvel worked with disability advocates to ensure that their premier showing for The Eternals was accessible by providing an ASL interpreter and utilizing open captions. This is meaningful as many film screenings, premieres, and film industry events are often not accessible.
The Eternals had an impact on screening accessibility beyond the premiere as well. In a statement released by AMC, it was announced that every AMC market with at least two movie theatres will make a limited number of open caption showtimes available each week for all of their new movie releases. When films are shown in theatres with open captioning, the captions are displayed on the screen for everyone. Each moviegoer gets the same viewing experience and no extra steps need to be taken in order to access captions.
Movie theater accessibility leaves a lot to be desired
Open captioning is great for deaf or hard-of-hearing moviegoers, as many people have expressed frustration with the more commonly offered option of closed captioning devices. Closed captions are often offered through glasses, handheld devices, or devices that can clip onto the seat in front of you or be propped up in cupholders. Some deaf and hard-of-hearing moviegoers report issues with these devices including that the glasses are uncomfortable to wear and that the captioning devices offered are often old and prone to technical difficulties. Having to look at a separate screen for captions can also detract from the viewing experience.
Open captioning is also helpful in improving movie accessibility for many hearing moviegoers. Those with ADHD often prefer watching movies with captions to help them avoid missing anything.
AMC’s announcement was a big win in the push to make movie theaters more accessible. However, open captioning is still only available in select theaters and at select showings. Other large movie theater companies also still need to get onboard for the larger audience to see more progress.
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