Sia Opened Up About Being On The Autism Spectrum Following Her Controversial Film About A Nonverbal Autistic Girl

Warning: This post mentions suicidal ideation.

Sia is opening up her journey of discovering she's neurodivergent — just two years after the release of her controversial film Music.

Back in 2021, Sia faced major backlash for the movie, which revolved around a nonverbal girl with autism named Music.

The film received criticism for a number of reasons including Sia's choice to cast Maddie Ziegler, an able-bodied, neurotypical actor, instead of an actor with autism.

On top of that, there was also the involvement of the controversial group, Autism Speaks, as well as some difficult-to-watch scenes, like when Music was held in a prone restraint during a meltdown.

Through it all, Sia defended her decisions — and even managed to say some offensive things about sex workers and recovering drug addicts while doing so.

@dreadpiratejene / Via Twitter: @dreadpiratejene

And while Sia said she had made the movie "with nothing but love," she finally apologized for her actions and the film. She admitted that she "listened to the wrong people" and her research was not thorough enough.

Sia later revealed that all the criticism had left her "suicidal" and after a relapse, she checked into rehab.

Now, two years after the film's release, Sia says she's been on a journey after finding out she's "on the spectrum."

"I’m on the spectrum, and I’m in recovery and whatever — there’s a lot of things," Sia said on Rob Has a Podcast.

She added that "knowing about which kind of neuroatypicality you may have or may not have" helps people to live an honest life.

"Nobody can ever know and love you when you’re filled with secrets and living in shame," she said.

Sia continued, "And when we finally sit in a room full of strangers and tell them our deepest, darkest, most shameful secrets, and everybody laughs along with us, and we don’t feel like pieces of trash for the first time in our lives, and we feel seen for the first time in our lives for who we actually are, and then we can start going out into the world, just operating as humans and human beings with hearts and not pretending to be anything."

She went on to note that in the past two years, she's finally been able to live her truth.

"For 45 years, I was like, ‘I’ve got to go put my human suit on,'" she said. "And only in the last two years have I become fully, fully myself."

You can hear all that Sia had to say below.

If you or someone you know are dealing with an emotional crisis or thinking of suicide, please don't hesitate to call 1-800-273-TALK (8255) for lifeline support.