Sia says ‘I’m on the spectrum’ two years after her Music film sparked backlash from the autism community

Singer’s directorial debut starring Maddie Ziegler faced intense criticism for its ‘troubling and misleading’ depiction of autism

Sia has said she’s “on the spectrum”, two years after her directorial debut faced significant backlash for its “troubling and misleading” depictions of autism.

The film, titled Music, starred former Dance Moms prodigy Maddie Ziegler as a young nonverbal girl on the autism spectrum.

Following its 2021 debut, the movie was torn apart by critics, with The Independent’s Adam White writing in his one-star review that it “uses autism like it’s a ‘Live, Laugh, Love’ poster”.

It currently sits at seven per cent on review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes.

Now, years later, during an appearance on an episode of Rob Has a Podcast, the 47-year-old Australian singer disclosed: “I’m on the spectrum, and I’m in recovery and whatever – there’s a lot of things.

According to People, Sia said: “For 45 years, I was like, ‘I’ve got to go put my human suit on.’ And only in the last two years have I become fully, fully myself.”

Sia has previously spoken publicly about her struggles with sobriety and her time in rehab for alcohol addiction. But this marks the first time she’s ever addressed being on the autism spectrum.

“Nobody can ever know and love you when you’re filled with secrets and…living in shame,” Sia said, sharing that she experienced relief after “knowing about which neuroatypicality [she] may have or may not have”.

The Independent has contacted Sia’s representative for comment.

Music faced retaliation from within the autism community for casting the neurotypical Ziegler as a neurodivergent character, and for including scenes in which an autistic character is restrained in a physical position that has led to injuries and even death in reality. It was also boycotted by more than 60,000 people, who signed a petition to have it banned from being distributed.

At the time, Sia defended the movie, saying: “The character is based completely on my neuro-atypical friend.

“He found it too stressful being nonverbal, and I made this movie with nothing but love for him and his mother.”

However, when the title was nominated that year for a Golden Globe, Sia issued an apology, promising she had “been listening” and that moving forward, Music will “have this warning at the head of the movie: ‘Music in no way condones or recommends the use of restraint on autistic people”.

Nearly a year after the uproar, Sia admitted that she became “suicidal” and “relapsed” after the controversy.