{"id":43573,"date":"2025-04-02T09:31:01","date_gmt":"2025-04-02T13:31:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/idolchatter\/?p=43573"},"modified":"2025-04-02T09:31:01","modified_gmt":"2025-04-02T13:31:01","slug":"netflix-drama-adolescence-confront-teenage-boy-crisis-force-parents-to-understand","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/idolchatter\/2025\/04\/netflix-drama-adolescence-confront-teenage-boy-crisis-force-parents-to-understand.html","title":{"rendered":"Netflix Drama ‘Adolescence’ Confront Teenage Boy Crisis, Force Parents to Understand"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Netflix<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Stephen Graham, who stars, co-writes, and co-creates the four-part hit drama <\/span>Adolescence<\/span><\/i> on Netflix, is <\/span>being applauded<\/span><\/a> for producing content on such a frank subject matter\u2014teen violence in schools. It\u2019s so candid that emotions stick with you long after the credits have finished rolling.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Co-written and -created with Jack Thorne, the series portrays a 13-year-old boy named Jamie (Owen Cooper) who is arrested for murdering a female classmate. Katie (Emilia Holliday) is stabbed seven times near a public playground, which is only a short walk from their school. Her neck, chest, thighs, and arms illustrate a brutal killing and purposeful attack.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

As gruesome as that sounds, the UK-based series is receiving critical acclaim and support from advocacy groups for its transparent depiction of what some school-age children encounter each year.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Graham was interviewed at the series premier in Liverpool, England, discussing the real-life inspiration of 12-year-old Ava White, who a 14-year-old boy fatally stabbed in his hometown of Liverpool. He cited another example of a 15-year-old girl attacked by a 17-year-old with a kitchen knife outside a shopping center.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt really hit my heart,\u201d Graham said to the <\/span>Guardian <\/span><\/i>UK. \u201cI just thought: \u2018What\u2019s happening? How have we come to this? What\u2019s going on with our society?\u2019\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What\u2019s interesting about the series is that it\u2019s neither a crime mystery or a documentary; it\u2019s a characterization of crime everywhere happening against girls by fellow schoolmates. And it\u2019s necessary.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

After only two weeks on Netflix, <\/span>Adolescence <\/span><\/i>broke a streaming record with 88 million views. On \u201cSunday Today with Willie Geist,\u201d Danielle Hamegen reports about the Miller family in the show, their lives torn apart by the authorities and the gripping continuous shot.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

She reports about British Prime Minister Keir Starmer addressing Parliament about the series, noting that he watched it with his children and insists all schools should view it.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

On CNN, Graham <\/span>was asked <\/span><\/a>about the harrowing incel culture and why this project is so essential at this time. \u201cAs I was leaning in and trying to understand, I actually found a lot of things that were surprising to me, and a lot of ideas that, if I\u2019d heard them at the wrong time, would have taken me on journeys that I\u2019m very grateful I didn\u2019t go on,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

While most parents can\u2019t begin to think about such a heinous crime, the writer suggests that it\u2019s crucial to open our minds to the reality that something like this, coming from someone so young, is happening. Additionally, he believes it may begin with social media.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI think we need to find a way of dealing with social media. How we do that with the people that are governing social media right now is very tough because it\u2019s not going to come from (the platforms) policing themselves,\u201d he said to CNN. \u201cAnd in America, it\u2019s not going to come from legislation either.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n