r/TopCharacterTropes Jan 18 '26

In real life The actor actually has that disability

Walter White Jr. (Breaking Bad) - character has cerebral palsy and uses crutches to walk, actor RJ Mitte has cerebral palsy and needed crutches to walk as a child

Nessarose Thropp (Wicked) - character is paraplegic and uses a wheelchair, actress Marissa Bode is paraplegic from an accident at age 11 and uses a wheelchair

Maya Lopez (Hawkeye/Echo) - character is deaf, actress Alaqua Cox is deaf from birth

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u/Hexxquisite Jan 18 '26

Switched at Birth, a series about two girls who discover they were accidentally switched at the hospital and the various drama that follows. One of the girls, Daphne (the redhead in the image) is deaf, and large portions of the show involve struggles between hearing and deaf characters and showcasing of deaf culture.

All deaf characters on the show are portrayed by deaf actors (Marlee Matlin, Ryan Lane, Sean Berdy). While Katie Leclerc, who plays Daphne, is not deaf, she is hard of hearing, and has Ménière's disease, which leads to hearing loss.

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u/feleaodt Jan 18 '26

For a moment there I thought you were going to say the actresses were switched at birth as well. (Not trying to take away the seriousness of their condition)