--- description: The film starring Emilia Clarke and Sam Claflin portrays a man paralyzed by an accident title: People Are Calling Out 'Me Before You' for Its Portrayal of Disability image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3e8bba0a02fb95c4/6988951a3c1639603f45d6bb/me-before-you-film-disabilties.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Entertainment](/section/entertainment/) ## Entertainment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [movies](/tag/movies/) ## movies Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # People Are Calling Out _Me Before You_ for Its Portrayal of Disability  by [Denver Nicks](/author/denver-nicks/)  ## Denver Nicks Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close May 26, 2016 8:28 PM CUT  Sam Claflin in Me Before You. Sam Claflin in Me Before You.Alex Bailey—New Line Cinema  by [Denver Nicks](/author/denver-nicks/)  ## Denver Nicks Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close May 26, 2016 8:28 PM CUT **Warning:** Spoilers for both the book and movie version of [_Me Before You_](http://time.com/4206130/me-before-you-trailer/ "undefined") ahead. Some members of the disabled community and their advocates are protesting how upcoming romantic film _Me Before You_ portrays a disabled character. The movie, which author Jojo Moyes adapted from her 2012 bestselling novel of the same name, tells the story of a paralyzed man (Sam Clafin of _Hunger Games_ fame) who falls in love with his caretaker (_Game of Thrones_‘ Emilia Clarke). Some have taken issue with the film’s ending, which shows Clafin’s character deciding to end his own life with [Dignitas](http://www.dignitas.ch/?lang=en "undefined"), a Swiss assisted suicide organization. Some disabled people and advocates for the community are using social media to push back against the film, using the hashtag#MeBeforeAbleism to object to the portrayal of a person choosing to die instead of living with a disability. > [](https://twitter.com/MikScarlet/status/735412252384333825) > [](https://twitter.com/Lilacmess/status/735307607078895616) > [](https://twitter.com/Imani%5FBarbarin/status/735562872646950914) > [](https://twitter.com/RodzNash/status/735746455143518208) > [](https://twitter.com/BathysphereHat/status/735508366919880704) > [](https://twitter.com/NathanielGale/status/734848478350839812) > [](https://twitter.com/PenPep/status/734829844677152769) > [](https://twitter.com/emily%5Fladau/status/734820884779814912) In a 2013 [interview with Woman Around Town](http://www.womanaroundtown.com/sections/woman-around-town/woman-around-town-jojo-moyes-discusses-her-best-selling-novel-me-before-you "undefined") referenced by [E! News](http://www.eonline.com/news/767970/me-before-you-draws-criticism-and-praise-from-disability-activists "undefined"), Moyes previously said she wasn’t trying to take a side in the debate over assisted suicide. “I think the one thing I do believe is that we shouldn’t judge someone else if we haven’t stood in their shoes,” she said. h/t [BuzzFeed News](https://www.buzzfeed.com/rosebuchanan/campaigners-are-pissed-about-the-representation-of-disabled "undefined") Me Before You: Film Called Out for Disability Portrayal ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4349204/disability-activists-me-before-you/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4349204/disability-activists-me-before-you/"},"headline":"People Are Calling Out Me Before You for Its Portrayal of Disability","datePublished":"2016-05-26T20:28:58.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T17:52:02.616Z","description":"The film starring Emilia Clarke and Sam Claflin portrays a man paralyzed by an accident","url":"https://time.com/4349204/disability-activists-me-before-you/","keywords":["movies","Entertainment","health","emilia clarke","disability"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3e8bba0a02fb95c4/6988951a3c1639603f45d6bb/me-before-you-film-disabilties.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Denver Nicks","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/denver-nicks/"}],"articleSection":"Entertainment","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3e8bba0a02fb95c4/6988951a3c1639603f45d6bb/me-before-you-film-disabilties.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"ME BEFORE YOU","caption":"Me Before You","creditText":"Alex Bailey—New Line Cinema","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/entertainment/","name":"Entertainment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/movies/","name":"movies"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4349204/disability-activists-me-before-you/","name":"People Are Calling Out Me Before You for Its Portrayal of Disability"}}]}] ```