The sensory overload scene in Spider-Man
In the new Spider-Man movie, there's a scene (multiple actually) where Peter's arachnid hormones spike and his senses become heightened. I love this scene, I feel like its unintentionally the most accurate depiction of an autistic meltdown/shutdown ever in common media. There's too much information being absorbed at once and it makes him disfunctional, unable to speak properly and only really being able to get out sounds of anguish. And his AI in the suit repeating "senses overloaded" over and over again reminds me of people who are trying to help by telling me what Im experiencing but only adding to the sensory overload. I dont know if this was intentional but I feel like this scene specifically because autistic people feel represented by one of the most beloved superheroes. I almost feel like it was intentional, the entire theme of the movie is how being special can make the world feel so lonely.
Posted Aug 5, 2026, 1:29 PM UTC