Rashid told Teen Vogue that she spoke with parents of autistic children she knew from both work and life to better portray the disorder.
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That’s not to say that Atypical or any other show or movie is being intentionally bad or hurtful. It is entirely possible that the show’s creators aimed to prove that Sam’s issues were the same as anyone else’s - who hasn’t felt awkward as a teenager or in relationships? But the way the storylines execute their punchlines and morals doesn’t seem to provide a lot of room to create those connections. To me, Atypical teaches us to laugh at people’s differences - and not in a good way. I can easily see school kids laughing at someone who they know is on the spectrum after watching this show, and simply assuming that they too must say the same things Sam does and have the same embarrassing difficulties in everything from relationships to school. And you and I have far more similarities than differences.
Being different doesn’t make you bad or wrong. In one of the few earnest moments of the show, Sam’s date asks him, “Is there something wrong with your brain?” As as an autistic person, I can answer her second question: No. Cringeworthy physical comedy isn't one of them. Sam not understanding any of his date's nonverbal cues, for instance. There are so many hilarious ways they could have had Sam's date fail. And what do they have Sam do? Pushes her so hard it almost seems like a punch, knocking her down to the ground after she takes off her shirt. This is the show’s chance to say that Sam can be successful at something that he can be suave.
Near the end of the first episode, we see Sam on a date with a girl. This is the crux of Atypical’s comedy, but there’s nothing that funny about turning someone’s disability into a punchline. As he does each of these things, it feels like the audience is supposed to laugh at how weird and different Sam is. In another, he just repeats the word “twat” over and over for no apparent reason. It’s purple,” seemingly unaware that this isn’t a socially acceptable thing to say. In one scene, he tells his counselor, “I can see your bra. Throughout the show, Sam’s autism manifests in how he simply makes the people around him incredibly uncomfortable. The audience later learns that that patient is Sam - making this not only a gross breach of patient-doctor confidentiality, but it also made me feel like the show was wanting us to laugh at Sam and not with him. In contrast, Sam’s school counselor can be seen giving a lecture about a patient of hers who spent the entire session time coming up with 95 ways to cook an egg. What’s more, they talk about Sam as if they don’t have anything in common with him and at times appear to present their son’s autism as a tragedy. Yet his parents seem to hint that they haven’t been able to go on a date since he was born, implying that they’ve sacrificed their own lives to help him through his. Sam is a high school senior at a regular school, and he doesn’t use an assistant or paraeducator, so he’s largely independent. After all, consider that the motto of the autistic community is “Nothing about us without us.” That motto should have extended to Atypical, too. But while exposure is great, if the creative team does not have leadership from within the community itself, it will inevitably misrepresent it. “We’re telling a very specific story, Sam’s story, and not trying to speak for every person on the spectrum,” she said.
Rashid also said that several crew members have autistic family members. It should be noted that showrunner Robia Rashid told Teen Vogue that the show worked with a professor who worked at UCLA's Center for Autism Research and Treatment while developing the series, and Netflix confirmed to Teen Vogue that Anthony Jacques, who plays Sam’s friend in one episode, has autism. Onscreen representation isn’t the same as behind-the-scenes representation, especially if that camera-facing depiction is flawed. Though the show aims to bring the topic of autism to the forefront, Netflix did not confirm whether there were concerted efforts to include autistic writers, creatives, or actors in any large roles.
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