Wicked star Marissa Bode has called for more disability inclusivity at the Met Gala and in the wider entertainment and fashion industries.
The queer star, who portrays Nessarose in the film adaptation of the musical, has urged non-disabled people and allies to “do the work” so that more events like the Met Gala can be accessible and represent those with disabilities.
Taking to TikTok on Thursday (8 May), the actress told her followers: “Disabled people have been screaming for years to be included.”
She noted that often her disabled peers often have opportunities to appear in a one-off “special diversity shoot” or “special episode”, but are failed to be “included regularly”.
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Wicked star Marissa Bode has calls for more disabled inclusivity at the Met Gala, asking non-disabled people and allies to “do the work”. Marissa, who is queer, spoke recently about changes to the Wicked sequel to make it “less harmful to disabled people”. #marissabode #wicked #wickedmovie #metgala #disability #lgbtqia
Bode explained, “More than the one and only disabled person included in something, hire multiple of us because we do often exist in the same spaces in real-life together.
“While none of us need a saviour, per se, all we want is to be heard and listened to and included.”
The star went on to note that one of the issues is “disabled people truly doing all the work”, rather than everyone in society questioning the accessibility of spaces.
Bode asked: “If you’re in the industry and have the means to do so, [asking], ‘Hey, why aren’t there other disabled people at the Met, and who can I talk to, to help that happen?’
“Why aren’t there a ton of disabled people in the entertainment industry as a whole? ‘Who can I talk to, to make that happen?’”
She urged: “I am begging others and non-disabled people to uplift those voices and question those within your spaces and more people within power to step it up. If y’all are truly allies, do the work.
“Help us all get there, because we cannot do this on our own,” Bode concluded.
According to reports, the first and only physically disabled person to be invited to the Met Gala was disability activist Sinéad Burke, who was invited to the event in 2019.
Bode’s concerns mark a wider issue in the fashion industry, with the British Fashion Council stating in its inaugural DEI census in 2024 that just 6 per cent of participants identify as disabled in the UK fashion industry. This is compared to one in six people in the country identifying as disabled.
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