Disability group slams Joaquin Phoenix casting in new movie

A disability rights group in the US has slammed the casting of Joaquin Phoenix as a disabled man in the new movie by director Gus Van Sant.

The Ruderman Family Foundation says that a genuinely disabled person should have been sought for the role instead.

Phoenix will play the controversial cartoonist John Callahan in the forthcoming Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far On Foot.

Callahan was in a car accident when he was 21, which left him a quadriplegic.

“It was a mistake for director Gus Van Sant to cast Joaquin Phoenix in his upcoming biopic about disabled cartoonist John Callahan,” said Jay Ruderman, the president of the foundation.

“The time has come for the entertainment industry to audition and cast actors with disabilities to play leading roles portraying disability.

“As we enter 2018, American society no longer finds it acceptable for white actors to play black, Asian or Hispanic characters.

“It is equally unacceptable and offensive for able-bodied actors to be cast inauthentically in the roles of characters with disabilities.”

The foundation adds that only 2 percent of roles in Hollywood go to disabled actors, despite around 20 percent of the US population being disabled themselves.

The movie, which is made by Amazon Studios, also stars Jonah Hill, Rooney Mara and Jack Black, and is due out in May.

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