Sia reveals she's on the autism spectrum, 2 years after she was criticized for the portrayal of autistic people in her movie 'Music'
- Sia revealed her autism spectrum diagnosis during a recent podcast appearance.
- "I'm on the spectrum and I'm in recovery," the "Chandelier" singer said.
Sia opened up about her health during a recent podcast appearance, revealing her autism spectrum diagnosis.
"I'm on the spectrum and I'm in recovery. There's a lot of things," she said on a new episode of "Rob Has a Podcast." "Being in recovery and also knowing about which neuroatypicality you may have or may not have, I think one of the greatest things is nobody can ever know you and love you when you're filled with secrets and living in shame."
"For 45 years I was like, 'I've got to go put my human suit on,'" she continued. "Only in the last two years have I become fully, fully myself."
The "Chandelier" singer, who is best known for concealing her face with massive wigs, previously cowrote and directed a film that follows a young girl on the autism spectrum. "Music" premiered in 2021 and starred Maggie Ziegler, Sia's longtime dancer and creative partner, in the lead role.
The trailer was met with backlash from people with disabilities, who took issue with the stereotypical portrayal of autism.
As Insider previously reported, much of the criticism stemmed from Ziegler's casting, since she is able-bodied and neurotypical.
"I've never referred to music as disabled," Sia wrote on Twitter, referring to Ziegler's character. "Special abilities is what I've always said, and casting someone at her level of functioning was cruel, not kind, so I made the executive decision that we would do our best to lovingly represent the community."
She also said she "tried working with a a beautiful young girl non verbal on the spectrum and she found it unpleasant and stressful," which was why Ziegler was ultimately cast, and based the character on an unnamed friend who "found it too stressful being non verbal."
Sia wrote the script and 10 original songs for the soundtrack. She described the movie as a "love letter to caregivers and to the autism community."