Latest news with #BeingHeumann
New Indian Express
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- New Indian Express
Ruth Madeley to headline Being Heumann
Actor Ruth Madeley, of Don't Take My Baby fame, will play the disability activist Judy Heumann in Apple Original Films's Being Heumann, which is an adaptation of the activist's memoir. The film is directed by the Oscar-winning CODA helmer Sian Heder. Being Heumann follows Judy Heumann as she leads more than a hundred disabled people to occupy the San Francisco Federal Building for a sit-in protest in 1977, seeking the enforcement of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, enabling accessibility to federal spaces to all. Heumann was bound to a wheelchair after being affected by polio at 18 months. Subjected to discrimination since her childhood, she turned to disability rights activism after being denied enrollment in a public school. She has led several campaigns and was instrumental in the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act through her civil rights organisation Disabled in Action. She occupied leadership positions under the Clinton and Obama administrations. Having starred in The Almond and the Seahorse and the Netflix film Joy, Madeley's big break came with the 2015 BBC drama Don't Take My Baby. Madeley, known for championing disability representation in the arts, was born with spina bifida - a condition affecting the spine and spinal cord development. She'll next lead BBC's The Rapture, a five-part adaptation of Liz Jensen's bestseller.
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘CODA' Director Sian Heder's ‘Being Heumann' Lands Ruth Madeley as Lead
Ruth Madeley will play disability rights activist Judy Heumann in the Apple movie Being Heumann from CODA director Sian Heder. The BAFTA-nominated actress will play Heumann as she leads over a hundred disabled people to take over the San Francisco Federal Building, kicking off a 28-day sit-in. The protest led to the enforcement of section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, which required all federal spaces to become accessible. Heumann, known as 'the mother of the disability rights movement,' was a central architect of the Americans with Disabilities Act. She died in 2023 at the age of 75. More from The Hollywood Reporter Lin-Manuel Miranda and Original 'Hamilton' Cast Performing at Tony Awards John Mulaney's Fight With Three 14-Year-Olds Was a Bit of a Letdown Sydney Sweeney, Jennifer Lawrence and Robert Pattinson, Michelle Yeoh Films Sell Wide at Cannes The film is based on Heumann's best-selling memoir of the same name, which Heder and Rebekah Taussig adapted for the screen. Heder will also produce under her overall deal with Apple, along with David Permut and Kevin Walsh for The Walsh Company via that banner's overall deal with the studio. Heumann's managers John W. Beach and Kevin Cleary of Gravity Squared Entertainment will also serve as producers. Executive producers include a posthumous credit for Heumann, Being Heumann co-author Kristen Joiner and Diana Pokorny. 'What an unbelievable honor to play The Mother of disability rights, an icon and powerhouse to the disabled community. Judy has always been a source of inspiration for me personally, and I am so excited to share her story with the world,' said Madeley, who was born with spina bifida. Her credits include U.K. series Dr. Who and Years and Years. Madeley is repped by Curtis Brown and Tapestry London. Best of The Hollywood Reporter 13 of Tom Cruise's Most Jaw-Dropping Stunts Hollywood Stars Who Are One Award Away From an EGOT 'The Goonies' Cast, Then and Now
