Many celebrities who have been extremely successful in their careers have also had dyslexia. Below, we have listed some celebrities and described their journeys and some of the hardships they had to face to get to where they are now.
1. Tom Cruise
Tom Cruise grew up in Syracuse, New York, and was born on July 3rd, 1962. His father was an electrical engineer and due to his profession, Cruise and his family moved around a lot and Cruise attended a dozen different schools. Cruise has trouble reading text and was diagnosed with dyslexia at age 7. In his early high school and acting career, he found it extremely challenging to read and when it came to acting, reading scripts was extremely difficult for him. However, Cruise set a 10-year deadline for himself to build an acting career and jumped into acting right after high school. Struggling audition after audition, he landed an appearance in Endless Love.
“I’d gotten to where I was operating on the force of sheer will. But I knew I was flying by the seat of my pants. I knew that if I didn’t solve this problem, the trapdoor was going to open up and that would be it.”
2. Patrick Dempsey
Patrick Dempsey was born on January 13, 1966, in Lewiston, Maine. Dempsey was always interested in entertainment, he loved juggling and acting. However, until the age of 12, he had undiagnosed dyslexia and was put in less advanced classes. Patrick Dempsey once said, “I think dyslexia has made me who I am today. It’s given me the perspective that you have to keep working. I have never given up.” Dempsey has to fully memorize his scripts for his acting roles. However, he has been extremely successful starring in the hit television show Greys Anatomy as well as Sweet Home Alabama, Transformers, Dark of the Moon and Valentine’s Day.
“Fame is fleeting. Sometimes people like you, sometimes they don’t. Not all people are going to like you”
3. Cher
Cher is a renowned entertainer who has been in the show business for four decades and has transformed herself from a singer to an Oscar-worthy actress. Cher is the only performer that has earned “top 10” hit singles four decades in a row. Cher’s acting career started through her mom’s influence. Cher’s mom had previously aspired to be an actress/model and pushed her to enroll in acting classes. Cher also has undiagnosed dyslexia which meant that her studies were extremely frustrating for her, and she dropped out of Fresno High School at age 16 to pursue her acting career. Cher rose to fame with her single I Got You Babe, whom she sang with her husband Sonny in the 1960s.
4. Keira Knightley
Keira Christina Knightley was born March 26, 1985, in the Southwest Greater London Suburb of Richmond. Both her mother and father were actors, and she got her own agent by the age of 3. She grew into an extremely successful actress as she starred in movies such as The Imitation Game, Pride & Prejudice, Pirates of the Caribbean and Stars Wars: Episode 1 – The Phantom Menace to name a few. Knightley discovered at an early age that she had trouble reading and writing and was undiagnosed with dyslexia. She worked incredibly hard, and her supportive family helped her work through this time.
5. Anderson Cooper
Anderson Cooper grew up in New York City and attended the Dalton School and Yale, he was diagnosed with dyslexia as a child. After university Cooper pursued a journalism career and became a correspondent for ABC News in 1995. Growing up, Cooper was exposed to his mother Gloria Vanderbilt’s exclusive lifestyle and social circle which helped him network and further his career.
Do you know any more celebrities with dyslexia that we’ve missed off our list? Email info@dyslexiacanada.org to let us know!