“CODA” director Sian Heder has reunited with Apple Original Films for the based on true-life events disability rights drama “Being Heumann,” starring British actress Ruth Madeley as the late activist and author Judy Heumann.
The project is based on Heumann’s best-selling memoir, and The Hollywood Reporter has revealed a high-profile addition to the film’s cast as Mark Ruffalo (“Task,” “Poor Things”) is set to play the role of Joseph Califano, who was the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare for the Jimmy Carter Administration.
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As mentioned at the top, “Bein Heumann” pulls from events from Heumann’s life as the disability rights activist in 1977 led over a hundred disabled people in a 28-day sit-in at the San Francisco Federal Building. Those protestors vowed to stay put until the government enforces Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, requiring accessibility for all federal spaces.
Heder and Rebekah Taussig co-wrote the script for “Being Heumann,” as the pair adapted Heumann’s memoir for the screen, which was published back in 2020.
Having worked in British films, theatre, and television, Madeley’s credits include “Doctor Who,” “Years & Years,” and “Don’t Take My Baby.”
Ruffalo has a new HBO series incoming with “Task,” the thriller “Crime 101” starring opposite Chris Hemsworth and Halle Berry, and recently joined Natalie Portman in the Lena Dunham-directed romantic comedy “Good Sex.”
This topic centered in “Being Heunmann” is certainly timely, as you might be familiar with recent sit-ins with other equally determined disability protestors spotlighting the cruel attempts by both Congress and the Trump Administration to cut federal aid and funding to all sorts of government programs that exist to help the community live with dignity and combat increasing costs for care/essentials.
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