Micah D. Fowler (born March 5, 1998) is an American actor. He portrayed the lead of the
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
sitcom ''
Speechless'' (2016–2019).
Early life
The younger brother of actress
Kelsey Fowler
Kelsey Fowler (born September 6, 1996) is an American stage and film actress. She began her professional acting career at the age of ten, performing on Broadway, and acting in television commercials and film. Kelsey has appeared on Broadway for s ...
, he grew up in
Barnegat Township, New Jersey.
[ ] He grew up performing in local theater productions along with his sister. After his sister started taking roles on Broadway, Fowler thought he might like to advance his acting career as well.
Career
Micah D. Fowler started pursuing acting at the age of 5, which led him to roles on ''
Blue's Clues
''Blue's Clues'' is an American live-action/animated children's television series, created by Angela C. Santomero, Todd Kessler, and Traci Paige Johnson, that premiered on Nickelodeon as part of its Nick Jr. block on September 8, 1996, and ...
'' and ''
Sesame Street
''Sesame Street'' is an American educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Workshop until June 2000) ...
''. He booked his role for ''
Labor Day'' at age thirteen. For his most recent role, as "JJ DiMeo" on ''
Speechless'', he found out he booked the role on his eighteenth birthday. In an interview with ''
People magazine
''People'' is an American weekly magazine that specializes in celebrity news and human-interest stories. It is published by Dotdash Meredith, a subsidiary of IAC. With a readership of 46.6 million adults in 2009, ''People'' had the lar ...
'', Fowler said it was the "best birthday present ever!"
Regarding his role on ''Speechless'', he said it is a challenge to play JJ. Although Fowler is able to speak, the JJ character does not speak, so Fowler has to compensate with dramatic facial expressions and body movements. It's said that Fowler's humor gets the show's biggest laughs.
He said he sometimes just wants to blurt out what he is feeling or saying.
Fowler and the character he portrays both have cerebral palsy, and he is one of few actors with a disability playing a character with a disability on primetime network television.
Ambassador for the Cerebral Palsy Foundation
When not performing, Fowler devotes his time as an ambassador for the
Cerebral Palsy Foundation
Cerebral may refer to:
* Of or relating to the brain
* Cerebrum, the largest and uppermost part of the brain
* Cerebral cortex, the outer layer of the cerebrum
* Retroflex consonant, also referred to as a cerebral consonant, a type of consonant so ...
(CPF). After each episode of ''Speechless'', the CPF's website posts content and short informational videos about cerebral palsy. Fowler encourages, "So the next time you watch ''Speechless'', take 10 minutes to check out their post for the night."
Personal life
When taking the role for ''Speechless'', Fowler had to move from New Jersey to Los Angeles and also missed much of his sled hockey season and most of his senior year.
While Fowler had previously been somewhat averse to social media, after landing the role, he joined both Instagram and Twitter in an effort to promote the show.
Growing up he said he was a huge fan of movies and television saying, "I couldn't help but notice the lack of characters dealing with disabilities."
In the future, Fowler even hopes to be in a ''
Star Wars'' film or a Marvel movie.
Filmography
* ''
Blue's Clues
''Blue's Clues'' is an American live-action/animated children's television series, created by Angela C. Santomero, Todd Kessler, and Traci Paige Johnson, that premiered on Nickelodeon as part of its Nick Jr. block on September 8, 1996, and ...
'' (2005)
* ''
Sesame Street
''Sesame Street'' is an American educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Workshop until June 2000) ...
'' (2006)
* ''2 Lives: 2 Miles Apart'' (2012)
* ''
Labor Day'' (2013)
* ''
Speechless'' (2016–2019)
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fowler, Micah
1998 births
21st-century American male actors
Living people
People with cerebral palsy
People from Barnegat Township, New Jersey
Male actors from New Jersey
Male actors from Los Angeles
Actors with disabilities
American male television actors