Dr. Angela Lauria and Matt Lowry, LPP dive into the Hulu original TV show, “Only Murders in the Building,” and its positive portrayal of Autistic culture. This hilarious and intriguing whodunnit created by Steve Martin and writer/actor John Hoffman is filled with Autistic characters who are oh-so relatable!
They analyze the Autistic traits of the main characters Charles (Steve Martin), Oliver (Martin Short), and Mabel (Selena Gomez), including special interests, sensory differences, pattern recognition, Autistic scripting, Autistic accents, and Autistic masking.
“He is getting ready to go on a date and we see him scripting over and over again and then thinking, ‘I don't have the script down, so maybe I just will cancel my date’…Raise your hand if this sounds familiar.” —Angela
The hosts highlight how the characters bond over their shared interests in true crime podcasts and solving murders, demonstrating how Autistic people often connect with people outside of their age group through special interests.
They praise how the show respects and utilizes the robust knowledge of the "superfan" characters, rather than making fun of them.
Other notable portrayals of Autistic adults are discussed, including: Howard, Poppy, Tim Kono, and Cindy Canning (played by Tina Fey, who the hosts discuss as having many Autistic traits herself).
The hosts point out realistic Autistic experiences shown like Autistic burnout, executive functioning differences, and misunderstandings in relationships.
“Even those of us who trained in psychology, it hits us because, again, we have learned, we have been taught throughout our entire lives, that our needs are ‘excessive,’ that we ‘over-think,’ that we ‘over-feel,’ that we are ‘too much,’ so we must compromise to fit other people into our lives.”—Matt
Matt and Angela conclude that the show insightfully explores many facets of Autistic culture through multifaceted Autistic characters.
This episode, Angela shared about at least two popular aspects of Autistic food culture. In the comments, tell us which Autistic food habits you picked up on, and use #AutisticCultureCatch to share your answer on your social media!
Article: The Cast of 'Only Murders in the Building': Everything to Know
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