Exposure to bright, flashing lights can trigger seizures in certain people with epilepsy, the Epilepsy Foundation warns
“Incredibles 2” crushed a box office record this weekend for the biggest animated opening of all time, but the highly anticipated sequel has also sparked health concerns for some viewers. Some doctors and theaters are warning moviegoers that scenes in the film with bright, flashing strobe lights could cause epileptic seizures in people with certain conditions.
After the Disney and Pixar movie premiered on Friday, some patrons took to Twitter to warn others of the possible safety hazard and to implore Disney to alert audiences.
“TO ANY FRIENDS WHO HAVE EPILEPSY, SEIZURE DISORDERS OR LIGHT SENSITIVITY: please be careful if you’re seeing the Incredibles 2,” one Twitter user said. “I unfortunately had an issue and don’t want this happening to anybody else.”
“Just saw Incredibles 2. It was awesome! However, someone in our theater had an epileptic seizure due to some visual effects. Be safe,” another warned in a tweet.
Veronica Lewis offered a breakdown of the problematic flashing light scenes in the movie and asked that Disney issue a warning to future moviegoers.
“I am not calling for a boycott of Incredibles 2, or to change the movie. It is very well done, and the strobe lights are an important point in the plot. I just wish Disney/Pixar and theaters alike would issue a warning that the movie contains several scenes with strobe lights,”she tweeted.
On Saturday, the Epilepsy Foundation issued a statement calling for the same.
“To avoid any serious medical incidents, the Epilepsy Foundation is requesting that Disney Pixar post a warning on all its digital properties, including relevant websites and social media channels, about what has been described as ‘flashing’ and ‘strobe’ lights in its ‘Incredibles 2’ movie,” the organization said in a statement. “There should be a warning of the potential effects on people with visual sensitive epilepsy or migraine features.”
Lewis tweeted an update on Saturday night with photos of signs at various theaters warning people about the flashing lights in “Incredibles 2.” It’s being reported that Disney asked theaters to post the warnings, but the company did not immediately respond to a request for comment from CBS News.
“‘Incredibles 2’ contains a sequence of flashing lights which may affect customers who are susceptible to photosensitive epilepsy or other photo sensitivities,” the signs read.
According to the Epilepsy Foundation, exposure to flashing lights at certain intensities, or with certain visual patterns, can trigger seizures in about 3 percent of people with epilepsy. The condition is known as photosensitive epilepsy and it’s more common in children and adolescents.
Epilepsy affects more than 3.4 million people in the United States and 65 million around the world. This year, another 150,000 people will be diagnosed with epilepsy. Despite a number of available treatments, at least 3 out of 10 people with epilepsy continue to experience uncontrolled seizures and many more experience less than optimal seizure control.
