Famous People with Dyslexia

My daughter is proud to be dyslexic. She knows that it just means she sees the world differently from everyone else. This week we spent some time talking about her dyslexia. It turns out many of the people she acts with are also dyslexic. This prompted a fun discussion. We wanted to find out if there were any famous people with dyslexia. I am going to share a few of the ones we found and some information I found out about them as we looked together. This is a working list. I may add or remove people from it as new information comes to light. If you have a verified reference of someone famous with dyslexia please leave me a comment and I might add them.

Famous Dyslexic People

Orlando Bloom

Famous for Pirates of the Caribbean as well as his role in the Lord of the Rings series, Orlando Bloom struggled with dyslexia as well. He is quoted saying, “I had to work three times as hard to get two-thirds of the way. I was frustrated with that learning disability. It makes you feel stupid.” After doing IQ testing he realized that he was smart but just learned a different way. You can read more about Orlando Bloom at ABC News.

Jim Carrey

Famous for movies like The Mask and The Grinch Jim Carrey has made a name for himself on the big screen. However, he grew up as a child with dyslexia and struggled in school. You can read more about Jim Carrey at Success Groove.

Leonardo DaVinci  

Famous for many amazing art pieces as well as his Scientific ideas, Leonardo DaVinci was also dyslexic. You can read more about Leonardo DaVinci at Dyslexia.com.

Whoopi Goldberg

Famous for movies as well as doing some voice acting work for Liberty’s Kids, Whoopi Goldberg hasn’t always been a success. In fact, in elementary school she was an undiagnosed dyslexic who labeled herself “retarded.” You can read more about Whoopi Goldberg at Dyslexia.Yale.Edu

Keira Knightley

Famous for her role in Pirates of the Caribbean as well as many other pieces including Star Wars episode 1, Keira Knightly is also dyslexic. “Knightley struck a deal with her parents that if she worked on her reading every day, they would agree to hire her an agent.” You can read more about Keira Knightley at Understood.org

Steven Spielberg

Famous for directing and producing too many films to note, Steven Spielberg also grew up with dyslexia. He was not diagnosed until much later in life and struggled in school. You can read more about Steven Spielberg on the ABC news blog.

Tim Tebow

Famous for his abilities on the football field and his faith, Tim Tebow also has dyslexia. He is quoted saying, ” “It has to do with finding out how you learn,” he said. “I’m not somebody that opens a playbook and just turns and reads and reads. So I just made flashcards, I take each one, and then boom, when I’m traveling, I just flip through it. That really helped me. Writing it down, flipping through and quizzing myself, that was a great way for me to do it.” Read more about Tim Tebow at Understood.org

Bella Thorne

Famous for her role in Shake It Up on Disney channel, Bella Thorne is outspoken about the fact that she has dyslexia. The below video shares her talking a bit about her struggle with dyslexia.