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ADHD is a vastly misunderstood disorder, thanks to, in part, the inaccurate and non-inclusive representation in the media. Many equate the disorder to hyperactive, mischievous young boys who get in trouble in school because they can’t sit still. And sure, ADHD might appear this way for some, but the truth is it shows up in a wide variety of ways in different people.
So much so that ADHD can remain undiagnosed for years, even decades, especially in girls and women. Undiagnosed ADHD can lead to a variety of serious issues, including depression, self-medicating leading to addiction, and failure to perform daily tasks leading to problems in school and at work. Even more frustrating: there are still people who deny that ADHD is a real disorder despite decades of neurological data.
But while the world continues to grasp the disorder, we’ve decided to take a look at some characters in TV shows and movies who do (perhaps imperfectly at times) show the truth about ADHD. From Dory from Finding Nemo to Evelyn in the Oscar-winning movie Everything Everywhere All at Once, many characters have made people with ADHD feel seen for the very first time.
That feeling was even felt by one of EEAAO’s directors, Dan Kwan. “I started doing some research [on ADHD]. And then I stayed up until like, four in the morning, just reading everything I could find about it, just crying, just realizing that, ‘Oh, my God, I think I have ADHD,'” the Oscar winner told Salon. “So this movie is the reason why I got diagnosed. I got diagnosed, I went to therapy for a year and then went to a psychiatrist. And I’m now on meds, and it’s such a beautiful, cathartic experience to realize why your life has been so hard.”
To find out more movies and TV shows like this one, which shows the ups and downs of ADHD, scroll below.
A version of this story was originally published in 2021.
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Dory in ‘Finding Nemo’
Image Credit: © Walt Disney Co./Courtesy Everett Collection Finding Nemo‘s Dory captures some of the moods and behaviors of a person with ADHD well — her forgetfulness, difficulty paying attention, and frantic thought patterns are relatable symptoms for some living with the disorder.
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Dory in ‘Finding Dory’
Image Credit: ©Walt Disney Co./Courtesy Everett Collection If you care for a double feature, 2016’s Finding Dory continues to show the spectrum of life with ADHD through Dory.
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Daniel Hillard in ‘Mrs. Doubtfire’
Image Credit: © 20th Century Fox / courtesy Everett Collection Robin Williams’ “real” character in Mrs. Doubtfire, Daniel Hillard, portrays a man who adores his children but is often too impulsive and unreliable to be a consistent parental figure.
After frustrating his ex-wife for the last time and facing a custody battle for their kids, Daniel disguises himself as Mrs. Doubtfire, a nanny who watches over the children while learning structure and becoming a stronger parent in the process.
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Tracy Jordan in ’30 Rock’
Image Credit: Ail Goldstein/©NBC/courtesy Everett Collection Tracy Morgan stars in 30 Rock as Tracy Jordan, a character based on his own life experiences. He’s hilarious and blunt and has won many awards for his performance, deservedly so. 30 Rock is an NBC sitcom about working behind the scenes on an NBC sketch comedy show, written and starring Tina Fey, loosely based on her experiences on Saturday Night Live. Tracy’s unpredictable and impulsive behavior is typical of those with ADHD.
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Julia Child in ‘Julie & Julia’
Image Credit: Columbia Pictures. Amy Adams stars in this 2009 biographical film as Julie Powell, a young professional in New York City who starts a blog in the hopes of cooking the 524 recipes from role model Julia Child’s cookbook in 365 days. The movie is based on Julie Powell’s memoir, Julie & Julia: My Year of Cooking Dangerously.
Julie, who has been diagnosed with ADHD, struggles to balance everything going on in her life — from her mundane job, she struggles to get through to her hobby-turned-obsession blog. As someone with ADHD who failed 9-to-5 office jobs time and time again, and who started a blog while struggling through work, I identified with Julie Powell in a way I hadn’t ever experienced before.
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Juno in ‘Juno’
Image Credit: ©Fox Searchlight. All rights reserved/courtesy Everett Collection. Juno tells the story of a quippy, intelligent pregnant teenager. Played by Elliot Page, the film follows the various decisions Juno has to make throughout the pregnancy and adoption process. Only a well-written ADHD character like Juno could make you laugh when things are serious, and cry when things are funny. She displays the impulsivity and emotional dysregulation that ADHDers struggle with, alongside her individuality, vulnerability, and creativity that make people with ADHD who they are in the best way.
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Percy Jackson in ‘Percy Jackson & The Olympians’
Image Credit: ©20th Century Fox Film Corp/courtesy Everett Collection. Percy Jackson, the main character of the Percy Jackson sci-fi series, lives with diagnosed ADHD and dyslexia. The series is inspired by Greek mythology, and Percy’s dyslexia allows him to read Ancient Greek while his ADHD helps him conquer the challenges he faces throughout the series
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Hiccup in ‘How to Train Your Dragon’
Image Credit: © Universal Pictures / courtesy Everett Collection. How to Train Your Dragon‘s Hiccup often feels different than the people he shares his village with, and they notice his differences, too. His father says, “He doesn’t listen. He has the attention span of a sparrow… I take him fishing, and he goes hunting for trolls!”
After years spent trying to fit in with his neurotypical family and villagers, Hiccup eventually accepts his differences and uses them to save his friends and family.
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Barney Stinson in ‘How I Met Your Mother’
Image Credit: Ron P. Jaffe/©CBS/Courtesy Everett Collection. Barney Stinson, played by Neil Patrick Harris, responds to being called “the worst student ever” by saying, “They said I have AD… H… something… Hey, can we have class outside?” While this is a bit of a stereotype, it holds true. His frequent and sudden displays of emotion match the emotional dysregulation of ADHD, a symptom that often goes overlooked.
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Stiles in ‘Teen Wolf’
Image Credit: ©MTV/Courtesy: Everett Collection. Teen Wolf is a TV series that follows a high schooler turned werewolf, who protects his town from supernatural disturbances. The main character’s best friend, Stiles, mentions throughout the series that he’s been diagnosed with ADHD and takes medication for it.
Many of his struggles with inattentiveness and hyperactivity are typical of ADHD, but he also reveals that he struggles with anxiety and panic attacks. Roughly 50% of adults with ADHD also struggle with anxiety; I appreciate the writers for including a lesser-known but prevalent symptom of the disorder.
Here’s a quote from the first season from Stiles’ coach and teacher that felt painfully familiar: “So, Stiles. Great kid. Zero ability to focus. Super smart. Never takes advantage of his talents.”
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Spinner in ‘Degrassi: The Next Generation’
Image Credit: Entertainment One. Spinner is one of the longest-running main characters on the Canadian teen drama series, Degrassi: The Next Generation. Spinner goes through a lot of changes and struggles throughout the 10 seasons he’s in. He gets his nickname, Spinner, from his hyperactivity — and his struggles with ADHD run throughout his appearance in the series.
At the end of season one, Spinner’s best friend, Jimmy, convinces him to share his Ritalin to help his performance during the basketball game, which turns out to be a disaster. With the stigma about ADHD medication, this episode tackles two important issues: how much medication made a palpable difference in Spinner’s life, and how the medication has an opposite effect on someone without ADHD.
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Gene Belcher in ‘Bob’s Burgers’
Image Credit: FOX. Gene Belcher is the middle child of parents Bob and Linda Belcher on Bob’s Burgers, an animated series that follows the family and their journey owning and operating a burger restaurant. While Gene’s propensity to have random outbursts and acts of impulsivity are stereotypical symptoms, his openly loving personality is an ADHD trait that often gets glossed over.
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Evelyn in ‘Everything Everywhere All at Once’
Image Credit: Allyson Riggs /© A24 / Courtesy Everett Collection While Michelle Yeoh’s character is never outright diagnosed with ADHD in Everything Everywhere All at Once, her character’s ever-busy mind and her experience of the world around her makes for one of the most captivating (and Oscar-winning) ADHD portrayals on the big screen.
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Tom in ‘The Other Tom’
Image Credit: © Outsider Pictures / Courtesy Everett Collection In a movie that shows a critical yet underappreciated perspective when it comes to ADHD, The Other Tom tells the story of a mom grappling with her son’s mental health issues. After his ADHD diagnosis, and the doctor’s prescription for meds, she continues to grapple with his symptoms, and if medication is really the path she wants to pursue.
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Charlie Bartlett in ‘Charlie Bartlett’
Image Credit: ©MGM/Courtesy Everett Collection In a story that most likely inspired Sex Education, Charlie Bartlett tells the story of an outcast student named Charlie who becomes a student psychiatrist at school and becomes instantly popular. The catch? Charlie, who’s been diagnosed with ADHD, shares many of his patients’ fears and feelings with his own psychiatrist too.
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‘Free the Mind’
Image Credit: ©International Film Circuit/Courtesy Everett Collection The 2012 documentary Free the Mind follows brain specialist Dr. Richard Davidson as he experiments with meditation and yoga as a means of helping a series of mental health patients, including soldiers with PTSD and children with ADHD.
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