A hard worker who's unapologetic about herself, Millicent "Millie" Simmonds [1] first captivated us in her emotional performance in Wonderstruck as a deaf girl who leaves home looking for her mother. The actress, who is herself deaf and works with an American Sign Language translator, became a star after portraying John Krasinski [2]'s daughter in the 2018 horror film A Quiet Place [3]. Since then, she's been in projects such as Andi Mack, This Close, and, of course, A Quiet Place Part II [4].
While her onscreen presence continues impressing us, her offscreen one is graceful and uplifting as well. Drawing from her own experience, Millie openly advocates for nuanced representation of different disabilities. She also speaks candidly about learning confidence and pursuing her passion. Millie's most inspiring quotes will encourage you to be more empathetic and work hard towards your dreams — we compiled our favourite ones ahead!
Millicent Simmonds on Finding Community
- "I'm so lucky that I can communicate with my family and other people who know signs, and I'm grateful for that. And I want hearing people who see this to find a way to communicate with deaf people so we can all become a family. We can all support each other [5]."
- "If you're disabled or different from what general society deems normal, it's fine. There will always be people who won't accept you, but there are others you can find who will. You're never alone [6]."
- "You know, even deaf-blind people or people who have other physical disabilities should also be supported. I think it's important that we show them that we can all be in this together and support and help one another as one big family [7]."
Millicent Simmonds on Pursuing Her Passion
- "I believe that if you truly want it [8], and it makes you happy, then you can do it."
- "I love hearing stories about someone who has everything going against them and instead does the complete opposite and succeeds [9]."
- "There's nothing like working so hard on something [10] and then seeing it on a screen and people responding to your performance."
- "My advice to those children that have dreams to work in Hollywood is to just work hard [11]."
- "Be true to yourself and tell that truth with confidence. And don't worry about what other people think too much [12]."
Millicent Simmonds on Advocating for Representation
- "Deaf people should challenge the status quo [13] and should be represented out there."
- "I'd like to see more roles for people with disabilities that you don't feel sorry for. We don't feel sorry for ourselves [14], so we don't need other people to feel that way about us."
- "I would like to encourage more people in the disability community, not just deaf people, to be more involved in the arts [15], and I'm also a huge supporter of other deaf actors, like Nyle DiMarco, Shoshannah Stern, Josh Feldman, Lauren Ridloff."
- "I hope seeing people like me on screen [16] inspires more people to chase their own dreams, and shows deaf kids anything is a possibility for them because I really don't feel like my deafness was an obstacle or should be a big deal. I'm an actress. I'm also deaf. I like to read. There's a lot more to me than just being deaf."