Bengal Emma Miller, who earned her diploma in 2020, is one of the young adults on the autism spectrum who are filmed while navigating dating, relationships, and, well, love.
“My mom is a big Netflix show watcher, and she told me about ‘Love on the Spectrum,’” Miller said during a recent episode of Connect Canyons. “Then we watched it and my mom’s like, ‘Emma, if they knew about you, they would have you.’ And then, surprise, foreshadowing.”
After graduating from Brighton, Miller attended ScenicView Academy, a nonprofit school serving young adults with autism and other neurodiversities. That is where she learned the show was casting participants in Utah.
Emma’s mother, Liz Miller, submitted an application while the family watched the 2025 Super Bowl. A few months later, Emma was in front of cameras.
Despite the whirlwind timeline, the family felt participating in the series was the right decision.
“I thought, ‘If I was a parent watching a show like this, I would really be interested in the kind of services that exist for adults on the spectrum,’” Liz Miller said.
The Millers hope their appearance on the show helps increase awareness and understanding of autism and other neurodiversities while also highlighting the opportunities available to individuals on the spectrum.
For Emma, the experience has reinforced the importance of confidence and self-acceptance.
“There is always hope for someone on the spectrum,” Emma Miller said. “Because if you thought of it as a curse, you wouldn’t get the opportunities you would receive. Take me, for example. I wouldn’t be on ‘Love on the Spectrum’ if I thought my autism was a curse. It’s part of who you are. It makes the world more interesting.”
The show often gives audiences a glimpse of young adults on the spectrum who enter the dating pool with some hesitation. But Emma said her journey toward confidence began years earlier — while attending middle school in Canyons.
“I did talent shows, performed, … faced some heartbreak, but in a way, it made me stronger,” she said.
Her confidence grew at Brighton, where she acted in school plays and was Homecoming royalty. While the first days may have been full of worry about being able to find a group of friends, she said she quickly connected with her peers.
“She felt like she was really a part of things at Brighton,” Liz Miller said. “She had a lot of opportunities and a lot of teachers that really saw her talents and her abilities.”
Emma hopes the Class of 2026, as well as other future BHS graduates, will embrace new experiences— including being a part of a reality TV cast, if the opportunity ever presents itself.
“You never know what’s out there,” she said. “You never know where you can end up.”
As for whether viewers might see Emma return for season five of “Love on the Spectrum,” she offered a simple answer:
“We’ll see.”
