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What Villains With Facial Differences Mean For People With Facial Differences

10.12.2021 - By NPRPlay

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In the newest James Bond movie, "No Time to Die", the main villain in the film, Safin, has scars covering his face. This has been the case for many past Bond villains.

But the trope isn't just limited to the Bond films. In Disney's "Black Widow," the main villain is revealed to have facial scarring covering her face. The same is true of the villain in "Wonder Woman," and even "The Lion King".

People with facial differences are speaking up about the harmful impact of being vilified on screen.

Changing Faces is an organization in the U.K. pushing the film industry to change the way it represents facial differences on-screen through the campaign "I Am Not Your Villain."

Why does the trope persist? And what does it mean for people with facial differences?

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