Adam Pearson (born 6 January 1985) is a British actor,

television presenter A television presenter (or television host, some become a "television personality") is a person who introduces or hosts television show, television programs, often serving as a mediator for the program and the audience. It is common for people ...

and campaigner. He made his acting debut in the 2013 film '' Under the Skin''. He has

neurofibromatosis Neurofibromatosis (NF) refers to a group of three distinct genetic conditions in which tumors grow in the nervous system. The tumors are non-cancerous (benign) and often involve the skin or surrounding bone. Although symptoms are often mild, e ...

and has been involved in outreach programmes to prevent bullying associated with

visible difference A visible difference refers to a physical characteristic, such as a scar, mark, disfigurement, or condition on the face or body that distinguishes an individual from what is conventionally considered to be the societal norm. These visible differenc ...

s. In 2024, Pearson starred in the film ''

A Different Man ''A Different Man'' is a 2024 American psychological dark comedy film written and directed by Aaron Schimberg, starring Sebastian Stan, Renate Reinsve, and Adam Pearson. The film follows Edward, an actor with neurofibromatosis who undergoes a ...

''. For his performance, he received wide critical acclaim, and was nominated for several awards, including the

Independent Spirit Award The Independent Spirit Awards, originally known as the FINDIE or Friends of Independents Awards, and later as the Film Independent Spirit Awards, are awards presented annually in Santa Monica, California, to independent filmmakers. Founded in ...

Early life

Adam Pearson was born in

Croydon Croydon is a large town in South London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a Districts of England, local government district of Greater London; it is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater Lond ...

, London, on 6 January 1985, along with his identical

twin brother Twins are two offspring produced by the same pregnancy.MedicineNet > Definition of Twin Last Editorial Review: 19 June 2000 Twins can be either ''monozygotic'' ('identical'), meaning that they develop from one zygote, which splits and forms two e ...

, Neil. After he hit his head at the age of five, the resultant bump persisted instead of healing. He was diagnosed with

neurofibromatosis type I Neurofibromatosis type I (NF-1), or von Recklinghausen syndrome, is a complex multi-system neurocutaneous disorder caused by a subset of genetic mutations at the neurofibromin 1 (''NF1'') locus. Other conditions associated with mutation of the ...

, which causes non-cancerous tumours to grow on nerve tissue. Both Adam and his brother Neil have the condition, which manifests very differently between them.

Career

Presenting

Pearson graduated from the

University of Brighton The University of Brighton is a public university based in Brighton on the south coast of England. Its roots can be traced back to 1858 when the Brighton School of Art was opened in the Royal Pavilion. It achieved university status in 1992. T ...

with a degree in Business Management. He had various jobs in television production for the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

and

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...

including the shows '' The Undateables'' and ''Beauty and the Beast''. He worked as a researcher for the BBC and Channel 4 before becoming a strand presenter on the first series of ''Beauty and the Beast: The Ugly Face of Prejudice'' in 2015 on Channel 4. Pearson stated that he had faced violent confrontation because of his appearance. He was also one of the development team of ''Beauty and the Beast'' and consulted on the Dutch version of the series. Pearson has worked on all five series of ''The Undateables'' for Channel 4 as the casting researcher. He has presented the

BBC Three BBC Three is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes for a 16 to 34-year-old target aud ...

documentaries ''Adam Pearson: Freak Show'' and ''The Ugly Face of Disability Hate Crime'', and appeared as a reporter in the Channel 4 series ''Tricks of the Restaurant Trade''. He co-hosted the

BBC Four BBC Four is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was launched on 2 March 2002

documentary '' Eugenics: Science's Greatest Scandal'' with

Angela Saini Angela Saini (born 1980) is a British science journalist, broadcaster and the author of books, of which the fourth, ''The Patriarchs: The Origins of Inequality'', was published in 2023 and was a finalist for that year's George Orwell Prize for ...

in 2019. Pearson is a regular caller and occasional guest host to ''The Bedtime Babble On'', a radio programme that airs on Spark Sunderland, weeknights from 10pm. Pearson was nominated as UK Documentary Presenter of the Year at the 2016 Grierson Awards. In August 2022, Pearson appeared on ''

Celebrity MasterChef ''MasterChef'' is a British competitive cooking reality show produced by Endemol Shine UK and Banijay and broadcast in 60 countries around the world. The show initially ran from 1990 to 2001 and was revived in 2005 as ''MasterChef Goes Large' ...

'', becoming the first contestant to be eliminated. That year, he also appeared in ''

Celebrity Antiques Road Trip ''Antiques Road Trip'' (also known as ''Celebrity Antiques Road Trip'') is a BBC television series produced by STV Studios. It was first shown on BBC Two from 2010 to 2012, and has been shown on BBC One since 2013. Format Regular In the progr ...

''. In 2024, he was the Brighton team captain on ''

Christmas University Challenge ''Christmas University Challenge'' is a British quiz programme which has aired on BBC Two since 19 December 2011. It is a spin-off from ''University Challenge'' that airs daily over the Christmas period, and features teams of noteworthy alumn ...

''.

Acting

In 2013, Pearson was cast alongside

Scarlett Johansson Scarlett Ingrid Johansson (; born November 22, 1984) is an American actress and singer. The List of highest-paid film actors, world's highest-paid actress in 2018 and 2019, she has been featured multiple times on the Forbes Celebrity 100, ''F ...

Jonathan Glazer Jonathan Glazer (born 26 March 1965) is an English filmmaker. He began his career in theatre before transitioning into film, directing the features '' Sexy Beast'' (2000), ''Birth'' (2004), '' Under the Skin'' (2013), and '' The Zone of Inter ...

's film '' Under the Skin''. He said that he hoped the role would challenge disfigurement stigma. It was in this film that Pearson discovered his enjoyment of acting. In 2019, Pearson starred in the film '' Chained for Life'' (directed by Aaron Schimberg). In 2024 Pearson played a leading role in Schimberg's next movie, ''

'', alongside

Sebastian Stan Sebastian Stan (born August 13, 1982) is a Romania-born American actor. Known for his work in both blockbuster and independent films, his accolades include a Golden Globe Award and a Silver Bear, in addition to nominations for an Academy A ...

and

Renate Reinsve Renate Reinsve (; born 24 November 1987) is a Norwegian actress. She made her film debut in the Joachim Trier film ''Oslo, August 31st'' (2011). Her breakout role came in Trier's romantic drama ''The Worst Person in the World (film), The Worst Pe ...

. The film premiered at the

2024 Sundance Film Festival The 2024 Sundance Film Festival took place from January 18 to 28, 2024. The first lineup of competition films was announced on December 6, 2023. Among the highlighted events included the premiere of a documentary about the 1980s rock band Dev ...

on 21 January 2024. It also screened in Competition at the

74th Berlin International Film Festival The 74th annual Berlin International Film Festival, usually called the Berlinale, took place between 15 and 25 February 2024 in Berlin, Germany. Kenyan-Mexican actress Lupita Nyong'o was named the Jury President for the main competition. This ye ...

on 16 February 2024. Pearson said of the film, "In order to challenge stereotypes, they first need to establish they exist". In May 2025, Pearson was announced to be starring as

Joseph Merrick Joseph Carey Merrick (5 August 1862 – 11 April 1890) was an English man known for his severe physical deformities. He was first exhibited at a freak show under the stage name "The Elephant Man", and then went to live at the London Hospital, ...

in an upcoming film adaptation of

Bernard Pomerance Bernard Pomerance (September 23, 1940 – August 26, 2017) was an American playwright and poet whose best known work is the play ''The Elephant Man''. Biography Pomerance was born in Brooklyn, New York City in 1940. He studied at the University ...

's play, ''

The Elephant Man Joseph Carey Merrick (5 August 1862 – 11 April 1890) was an English man known for his severe physical deformities. He was first exhibited at a freak show under the stage name "The Elephant Man", and then went to live at the London Hospital, ...

''. Pearson will be the first disabled actor to play this role in a film.

Personal life

Pearson lives in the

Addiscombe Addiscombe is an area of south London, England, within the London Borough of Croydon. It is located south of Charing Cross, and is situated north of Coombe and Selsdon, east of Croydon town centre, south of Woodside, and west of Shirley. ...

area of South London. He is a Christian and in September 2020 spoke to

Sally Phillips Sally Elizabeth Phillips (born 10 May 1970) is an English actress, comedian, and television presenter. She co-created and was one of the writers of the sketch comedy show '' Smack the Pony''. She is also known for her roles in '' Jam & Jerusale ...

, about reconciling his faith with his disability, in an episode of '' Sunday Morning Live'', remarking "A life without hardship is a life without faith; how can you practise your faith if you aren't walking through the fire?"

Filmography

Acting roles Presenting Television appearances

Awards and nominations

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pearson, Adam Living people English actors with disabilities English male actors English male film actors 1985 births English people with disabilities British actors British actors with disabilities British television presenters Alumni of the University of Brighton English twins Identical twin male actors Television presenters with disabilities 21st-century English male actors English Christians Male actors from London People from Croydon