Freddy Krueger, The Joker, Scar from The Lion King, Davy Jones from Pirates of the Caribbean, Voldemort. All have scars, all are villains and all of which are examples which real individuals with facial disfigurements are calling out as gross misrepresentations of themselves within the film industry, courtesy of a new video campaign: #IAmNotYourVillain.  

Launched by Changing Faces, the UK’s leading charity for the 1.3 million people in the UK with a visible difference, the campaign is urging the film industry to “stop using scars, marks or burns as a shorthand for villainy.” Created with production company Stories Like Us, the film is an appeal for better and more realistic representation and inclusivity of those with disfigurements, imploring us to think twice before following a stereotypical, snap judgement that has been set by a flawed movie industry thus far.

“Growing up, it’s very scary because you never see someone like you in a film,” says one campaign individual. “You never see someone who might be different as the hero,” adds another.

The BFI was one of the first organisations to support and champion the cause by signing up to the campaign and expressing that they will no longer fund films which portray facial differences through such a negative lens, in an attempt to help break the stigma and dispel the association between facial scarring and evil connotations.

Ben Roberts, BFI deputy CEO told the Telegraph: “Film has such a powerful influence on society, it enables us to see the world in new ways, enriches lives and can make a vital contribution to our wellbeing. It also is a catalyst for change and that is why we are committing to not having negative representations depicted through scars or facial difference in the films we fund.

It’s astonishing to think that films have used visible difference as a shorthand for villainy so often and for so long. The time has come for this to stop.

The BFI believes that film should be truly representative of the UK, and this campaign speaks directly to the criteria in the BFI Diversity Standards which call for meaningful representations on screen.  We fully support Changing Faces’ I Am Not Your Villain campaign and urge the rest of the film industry to do the same.”