“She’s Got Gaps, I’ve Got Gaps”: A Neurodiversity Reading of Rocky (1976)

Abstract

In 1998, Judy Singer coined the term neurodiversity to describe the variance in human neurology in a non-pathological way, countering the mainstream understanding of certain neurotypes as disordered. Two decades prior, Sylvester Stallone wrote and starred in Rocky, directed by John G. Avildsen. Rocky’s romance plot centers on two characters who not only can be read as neurodivergent, but whose neurodivergences are presented as non-pathological profiles of strengths and weaknesses. Rocky Balboa has some kind of intellectual disability, seemingly undiagnosed due to the access barriers of his lifelong poverty, as well as traits of attention-deficient/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Adrian, an extremely shy woman who works at the pet shop, can be understood as autistic, particularly in view of often-missed female presentations of autism. Further, their distinct neurodivergences are framed as compatible and mutually beneficial. Their relationship is portrayed in a way consistent with the neurodiversity paradigm, with Rocky and Adrian’s distinct neurotypes part of the natural variance within humanity.