Bedrockgames
I post in the voice of Christopher Walken
The trick is to note that the negative aspects are issues of society, not of the person who is disfigured. The Phantom has been driven to his state not by his disfigurement, but because society won't accept him as he is.
My point is there shouldn't be one approved way this needs to done. What matters is if the character is interesting, compelling, terrifying and how the story can move us. I think we run a real risk of limiting how artists can explore these topics and closing off avenues that are actually quite empathetic but get lost in the 'optics only' lens. I judge the overall message of a work. And even then I am still not going to write off a great novel or movie (I may handle the material differently myself if I approach the same themes but art is messy sometimes)