Outcry against hearing actor cast in Deaf role in American drama ‘The Stand’

The latest example of a hearing actor cast to play the role of a Deaf character in a TV series has led to an outcry from the Deaf community both in the USA and also here in the UK.

In the new CBS All Access series ‘The Stand’, based on books by Stephen King, the character of Nick Andros, who is Deaf and signs, is to be played by Henry Zaga, who is not D/deaf.

This has led to a boycott from Hollywood’s Deaf community and an online hashtag #StandAgainstTheStand has been widely shared over the weekend.

A statement has been posted to Twitter signed by 70 Deaf industry professionals in the USA, protesting against the casting, and this was followed by a similar signed statement by Deaf industry professionals in the UK.

The USA statement said:

“At the time of diversity and inclusion, this cycle of misrepresentation and unequal or non-existent employment opportunities for Deaf professionals in the entertainment industry, both in front of and behind the camera, must end. This has been happening for decades; enough is enough!”

And the UK statement has been shared on Twitter below:

We, the Deaf and Hard of Hearing creative sector in the UK, support our American peers in rejecting a hearing actor being cast to play a Deaf role in Stephen King’s ‘The Stand’. It is time this stopped.
Read our statement & join us in solidarity.#StandAgainstTheStand pic.twitter.com/lC3AO3ruw5

— Deaf Talent Collective (@DeafCollective) December 19, 2020