As the mystery unfolds on Hulu‘s Furious, viewers have also been treated to an unexpected romance.
Disabled actor Steve Way, who plays Alden on the Liz Meriwether thriller, praised the series creator for allowing him “to play a different side of myself” as the character sparks an unconventional romance with the mysterious femme fatale Catherine (Lola Petticrew).
“On Ramy, I was the funny, outspoken, empowered friend. Here, I’m timid, reserved and homebound,” he explained to Yahoo! Entertainment. “I also had the chance to play a romantic person, which I had never done before. I fell in love with the character right away. Liz Meriwether did such a good job capturing disability before I ever put any of my own touches on it.”
Way, who was born with muscular dystrophy, added, “I don’t think we’ve ever seen disabled romance portrayed onscreen in such a beautiful, healthy way before. Usually, a disabled romance is about a guy who either wants to lose his virginity or wants to kill himself. Here, it’s bigger than life. It’s so beautiful.”
In Furious, Catherine Grace (Petticrew) is a survivor of sex trafficking who begins killing wealthy men, leading FBI agent Alice Black (Emmy Rossum) down a rabbit-hole of sexual abuse that goes straight to the top. While plotting her vengeance, Catherine finds a rare safe space in the home of Alden (Way), a disabled young man whose late mother hired her to be his home-healthcare aide.
Way noted that Meriwether and the writers room “were very receptive to my notes and ideas,” adding, “We talked after every table read, before every shoot day and in the middle of filming. It was about things like: How would I receive something from this person? How would I say something? Liz gave me a lot of freedom, including the freedom to improvise.”
Embracing the “pressure that comes with representing the disabled community,” Way said, “I want to do us justice. I want to show how beautiful and empowering disabled love really is and how true it is. I know what love is. I want to show what it’s really like.
“When a role is written for a disabled actor, it shows that people are making decisions directly according to us. We’re being thought of. We’re being recognized for our talents. That’s huge,” he continued. “I don’t think that would have happened 10 years ago.
“We make up a quarter of the population. We make stories real. We make them human. We’re everywhere. Stop being weird about it. And if you love our work, prove it. Give us more opportunities. Give us more jobs. Give us the awards we’ve earned,” added Way.
New episodes of Furious are available to stream Mondays on Hulu, with the season finale debuting Aug. 31 on the platform.
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