Actor Adam Pearson Had the Perfect Clapback to Comedian's 'Cruel' Joke
Adam Pearson totally shut down a comedian who attempted to make a joke about his appearance.
Star of A Different Man with Sebastian Stan, the actor has facial disfigurement due to a disorder called neurofibromatosis type 1, which he was diagnosed with as a child. According to the Mayo Clinic, it’s a genetic condition which “causes changes in skin pigment and tumors on nerve tissue.” It’s extremely rare, affecting about 1 in 2,500 people.
Pearson found himself surrounded by support this week, however, after he took aim at comments Canadian comedian Danny Polishchuk shared on X.
In a post shared Tuesday, Polishchuk posted the above image of Pearson at this year’s Academy Awards this past Sunday. In the caption, he wrote, “Me and the boys after taking Chinese Peptides for 5 years.”
I was today years old when I learned that taking Peptides for 5 years made you an Academy member, award winning actor and Oscars attendee!
— Adam Pearson (@Adam_Pearson) March 19, 2026
You can tell a lot about a persons character by looking at who they’re willing to punch down towards - even in the name of comedy. https://t.co/r5I669oxO4
The following morning, Pearson hit back.
“I was today years old when I learned that taking Peptides for 5 years made you an Academy member, award winning actor and Oscars attendee!” he wrote.
The actor then added, “You can tell a lot about a persons character by looking at who they’re willing to punch down towards - even in the name of comedy.”
Pearson Flooded with Support
Pearson’s post went viral, and has since racked up more than 4 million views and 62K likes. Polishchuk’s original post, meanwhile, has now been viewed nearly 5 million times—and flooded with comments calling him out for cruelty.
“You thought this was funny? The real joke is how your parents raised you,” read one popular response. “That person is more accomplished and beloved than you ever will be,” added another.
One Pearson supporter commented, “he’s at the oscar’s you are struggling to sell a show in chandler. shall we focus.”
“So cruel of you,” wrote someone else, before another person added, “He starred in a film with Scarlett Johansson - what have you ever done?”
One person claiming to be the parent of a child with the same condition as Pearson also commented, writing, “As the parent of a little boy born with NF1, I just want to tell you that your joke was s--tty, and that this is also the kind of stuff that I worry about for my beautiful wonderful boy as he grows up.”
Polishchuk hasn’t yet responded to any of the backlash, though he has continued to post to his account on X.
Pearson Responds to Critics Too
There were some people who had Polishchuk’s back in Pearson’s replies, but the actor wasted no time responding to them with a dose of humor as well.
To one person who said, “You have thin skin,” he quipped, “Clearly not.”
He also replied to someone who wrote, “Dude, just own up to the fact that you look like a f--king monster. If I saw you in a dark room I would panic and attack you.” Pearson's reply: “How could you see me if the room was dark?”
After another critic wrote, “Learn how to take a joke holy s--t, you just ruined any good PR you had,” Pearson responded, “This was also a joke. You seem triggered?”
More generally, he added, “Ideally I’d like to not have my disability mocked but I guess that’s too much to ask eh? I guess we should all ‘suck it up’ and ‘move on.’”