TV puts a newlight on autism

everyone, whether or not they have experience with autism. “The theme is: No one’s normal.”

Sam is a sweet, intelligent young man who has a consuming interest in penguins, dislikes noisy environments and takes questionable dating advice from online and a friend so literally that it leads to embarrassing predicaments.

Although Gilchrist, 24, doesn’t share Sam’s autism, he’s found many connections to the character.

“Sam’s honesty is the most relatable part of him,” he says. “Most people will relate to the way he puts into words the difficulties ( of) dating.

“The way he describes some situations is basically how everyone feels, but most people don’t actually put it into words.”

His bluntness “creates conflict and also hilarious situations,” Gilchrist says.

Sam’s condition affects his loving family, too, in the eight- episode season. His parents, Elsa ( Jennifer Jason Leigh,

The Hateful Eight) and Doug ( Michael Rapaport, Justified), debate how protective they can be as their son ventures into adulthood. His younger sister, Casey ( Brigette Lundy- Paine), has learned to behave like a protective older sibling, even writing her brother’s online dating profile.

Leigh liked the show’s universal appeal, “how it used ( Sam) being on the spectrum as a metaphor for what every family goes through.” As a mother, Elsa “is overly attached initially ( to Sam),” she says, so “letting go is that much more difficult.”

Rashid acknowledges a responsibility to get Sam's and his family's story right. She consulted with a California State University professor who worked at UCLA's Center for Autism Research and Treatment.

Leigh, who began her acting career as a youth, gives a thumbs up to Gilchrist’s portrayal:

“Keir is really perfect. He never gets cute with it. … You feel like he’s very much in Sam’s shoes.”