13 Reasons Why

Series overview

Set in the fictional town of Crestmont, California, the first season follows Liberty High student Clay Jensen, who receives a set of cassette tapes at his front porch. These tapes were recorded by Hannah Baker, a former Liberty High student who killed herself two weeks prior and recorded thirteen reasons why she did so on the tapes. Each tape includes a reason for various people in Hannah's life – fellow students Justin Foley, Jessica Davis, Alex Standall, Tyler Down, Courtney Crimsen, Marcus Cole, Zach Dempsey, Ryan Shaver, Sheri Holland, Clay himself, Hannah herself, Bryce Walker, and school counselor Kevin Porter – and how those people are connected to her death.

In the second season, Hannah's parents sue the school district, during which Hannah's tapes are released online. The fallout from the events of the first season and the toll it has taken on the lives of Liberty High's students is further shown as new secrets about the subjects and their loved ones are revealed during the ensuing trial against the school.

The third season takes place eight months after the events of the second season. Ani Achola, a new student at Liberty High, narrates the season as Clay and his friends struggle to keep Tyler's attempted school shooting a secret and to help him in his recovery. Tensions rise among the tapes' subjects after Bryce is killed, with Clay as a suspect, and drastic measures are soon taken to protect each other. Concurrently with the present events of the season, Bryce's past actions and the person he has become in the aftermath of the release of Hannah's tapes are examined.

In the fourth and final season, Clay and his friends prepare to graduate from Liberty High. However, they struggle to keep the truth behind Bryce's death a secret and their deteriorating trust in each other threatens to unravel all of their personal secrets. Clay's mental health begins to deteriorate as he tries to keep everyone united, forcing him to face the traumas of his recent past, with the help of his therapist, Dr. Ellman.

Cast and characters

Main

Dylan Minnette as Clay Jensen, a student at Liberty High who had a crush on Hannah and becomes obsessed with finding out what drove her to end her life. At the end of the second season, he successfully talks Tyler out of committing a school shooting at the end-of-year dance and helps him escape the police. He is also the primary suspect in Bryce Walker's murder in the third season. His deteriorating mental health and subsequent recovery are a pivotal storyline in the fourth season.

Katherine Langford as Hannah Baker (seasons 1–2), a new student at Liberty High who leaves behind a set of tapes detailing thirteen reasons why she killed herself.

Christian Navarro as Tony Padilla, Clay's best friend at Liberty High who tries to help him deal with Hannah's death. Before her death, Hannah gives Tony the audio cassettes and holds him responsible for making sure everyone on the cassettes hears them. His family is deported in the third season after Bryce's father reports them to I.C.E.

Alisha Boe as Jessica Davis, a student who starts attending Liberty High at the same time as Hannah. She is raped by Bryce before the events of the first season, which leads her to start a sexual assault survivors club on campus. She is elected student body president in the third season. Throughout the series, she is in an on-again, off-again relationship with Justin Foley. In season four, she has a final reconciliation with Justin, which lasts until his death later that season.

Brandon Flynn as Justin Foley, a popular student at Liberty High who comes from an abusive family and is in a relationship with Jessica. He is responsible for setting the events of the series in motion by being the first person to humiliate Hannah, after their first date. He is initially Bryce's best friend and Clay's enemy until Justin breaks off his friendship with Bryce once he discovers Bryce sexually assaulted Jessica. At the end of the second season, Justin is adopted by Clay's parents and lives with Clay as his adoptive brother.

Justin Prentice as Bryce Walker, a popular student from a rich family and the captain of the football team and pitcher on the baseball team at Liberty High. He is friends with Justin, Zach, and Monty but is revealed to be a serial rapist who sexually assaulted Jessica and Hannah, among others. He is killed by Alex who pushes him from a bridge after he is already severely injured from a brutal assault by Zach.

Recurring

Josh Hamilton as Matt Jensen, a calm, reasonable college professor and Clay's father

Michele Selene Ang as Courtney Crimsen (seasons 1–3, guest season 4), a closeted student at Liberty High who is responsible for spreading rumors about Hannah to protect the secret of her own sexual orientation. In the second season, she comes out on the stand during the trial of Hannah Baker, confessing her actions against Hannah that landed her on the tapes.

Steven Silver as Marcus Cole (seasons 1–2), the self-centered student body president at Liberty High, who is responsible for humiliating and sexually harassing Hannah on a date. In the second season, he is suspended from school after lying on the stand during the trial and following the leaked release of the tapes soon after.

Ajiona Alexus as Sheri Holland (seasons 1–2), a student and cheerleader at Liberty High who forms a bond with Clay but is also on the tapes when her actions result in Jeff's accidental death

Tommy Dorfman as Ryan Shaver (seasons 1–2, guest season 4), a student at Liberty High who betrayed Hannah's trust

Sosie Bacon as Skye Miller (seasons 1–2), an estranged friend of Clay. In the second season, Skye and Clay date for a while before she leaves for a "fresh start", following another self-harm incident which resulted in her bipolar disorder diagnosis.

Brandon Larracuente as Jeff Atkins (season 1; guest season 2), a kind-hearted student at Liberty High and friend of Clay who died in a tragic car accident

Steven Weber as Gary Bolan, the principal at Liberty High

Keiko Agena as Pam Bradley (season 1; guest season 2), the Communications teacher at Liberty High

Joseph C. Phillips as Greg Davis (seasons 1–2, 4; guest season 3), a colonel in the United States Air Force and Jessica's father

Background and production

Development

Universal Studios purchased film rights to the novel on February 8, 2011, with Selena Gomez cast to play Hannah Baker. On October 29, 2015, it was announced that Netflix would be making a television adaptation of the book with Gomez instead serving as an executive producer. Tom McCarthy was hired to direct the first two episodes. The series was produced by Anonymous Content and Paramount Television with Gomez, McCarthy, Joy Gorman, Michael Sugar, Steve Golin, Mandy Teefey, and Kristel Laiblin serving as executive producers.

On May 7, 2017, it was announced that Netflix had renewed the series for a second season, which was released on May 18, 2018.

On June 6, 2018, Netflix renewed the series for a third season, which was released on August 23, 2019. It was dedicated to executive producer Steve Golin (founder and CEO of Anonymous Content), who died of Ewing's sarcoma on April 21, 2019, four months before the third season's release.

On August 1, 2019, it was announced that the series had been renewed for a fourth and final season, which was released on June 5, 2020.

Casting

In June 2016, Dylan Minnette, Katherine Langford, Christian Navarro, Alisha Boe, Brandon Flynn, Justin Prentice, Miles Heizer, Ross Butler, Devin Druid and Brian d'Arcy James were cast as the main leads. In September, Amy Hargreaves, Kate Walsh and Derek Luke were cast. Langford exited the show after the second season.

In August 2017, Jake Weber, Meredith Monroe, R. J. Brown, Anne Winters, Bryce Cass, Chelsea Alden, Allison Miller, Brandon Butler, Samantha Logan, Kelli O'Hara, and Ben Lawson were cast for season two.

In September 2018, Timothy Granaderos and Brenda Strong were promoted to series regulars for season 3 after recurring in the previous seasons. On September 5, 2019, Gary Sinise was cast as a series regular for the fourth season. On February 11, 2020, Jan Luis Castellanos joined the cast as a series regular for the fourth season.

Filming

Filming for the series took place in the Northern Californian towns of Vallejo, Benicia, San Rafael, Crockett, Sebastopol, and Martinez during the summer of 2016. The 13-episode first season and the special were released on Netflix on March 31, 2017. Therapy dogs were present on set for the actors because of the intense and emotional content of the series.

Filming for the second season began on June 12, 2017, but was briefly halted in October in response to the then-ongoing Northern California wildfires happening around the areas where the series was being filmed. Production on the second season wrapped in December 2017. The second season was released on May 18, 2018.

Filming for the third season began on August 12, 2018, but was halted due to another wildfire until December 17. Filming was scheduled to be completed on February 6, 2019.

The fourth season began filming in July 2019 and finished that December.

Release

The first season was released on Netflix on March 31, 2017. It received positive reviews, which praised its subject matter and acting, particularly the performances of Minnette and Langford. For her performance, Langford received a Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Actress – Television Series Drama. However, its graphic depiction of issues such as suicide and rape (along with other mature content) prompted concerns from mental health professionals. In response, Netflix added a warning card and from March 2018 on, a video plays at the start of each season warning viewers about its themes. In July 2019, Netflix edited out the suicide scene in the first season's final episode.

Netflix renewed 13 Reasons Why for a second season in May 2017 due to the success of the initial 13 episodes; filming of the second season began the next month and concluded that December. The second season was released on May 18, 2018. Coinciding with the release of the second season, Netflix released a video with the cast that cautioned viewers on some of the topics covered in the show and provided a support website with crisis numbers for people affected by depression, anxiety and other mental health issues. A third season was ordered in June 2018 and was released on August 23, 2019. In August 2019, the series had been renewed for a fourth and final season, which premiered on June 5, 2020. Critical and audience reaction to the series has been divided, with the program generating controversy between audiences and industry reviewers alongside acquiring a loyal following.

Reception

Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the series has an average rating of 35%. On Metacritic, the weighted average rating for all seasons except the last one is 60 out of 100, based on 38 critic reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews".

Rotten Tomatoes reports that 77% of 65 critic reviews are positive for the first season, and the average rating is 7.1/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "13 Reasons Why complements its bestselling source material with a gripping look at adolescent grief whose narrative maturity belies its YA milieu." Metacritic assigned a score of 76 out of 100, based on 17 critics, indicating generally favorable reviews.

Jesse Schedeen of IGN praised 13 Reasons Why, giving it a 9.2 out of 10, stating that the series is "a very powerful and hard-hitting series" and "ranks among the best high school dramas of the 21st century". Matthew Gilbert of The Boston Globe gave a glowing review for the series, saying, "The drama is sensitive, consistently engaging, and, most importantly, unblinking." Maureen Ryan of Variety asserts that the series "is undoubtedly sincere, but it's also, in many important ways, creatively successful" and called it "simply essential viewing". Leah Greenblatt of Entertainment Weekly gave the entire season a score of B+, calling the series "a frank, authentically affecting portrait of what it feels like to be young, lost and too fragile for the world". Daniel Feinberg of The Hollywood Reporter also praised the series, calling it "an honorably mature piece of young-adult adaptation", and citing its performances, direction, relevance, and maturity as some of the series' strongest points.

The acting, particularly that of Katherine Langford as Hannah and Dylan Minnette as Clay, was frequently praised in reviews. Schedeen of IGN praised the cast, particularly Minnette and Langford, stating: "Langford shines in the lead role ... [and] embodies that optimism and that profound sadness [of Hannah's] as well. Minnette's Clay is, by design, a much more stoic and reserved character ... and does a fine job in what's often a difficult role." Gilbert of The Boston Globe praised the chemistry of Langford and Minnette, saying that "watching these two young actors together is pure pleasure", while Schedeen of IGN also agreed, saying that they are "often at their best together, channeling just the right sort of warm but awkward chemistry you'd expect from two teens who can't quite admit to their feelings for one another". Feinberg of The Hollywood Reporter also praises both actors: "Langford's heartbreaking openness makes you root for a fate you know isn't possible. The actress' performance is full of dynamic range, setting it against Minnette's often more complicated task in differentiating between moods that mostly go from uncomfortable to gloomy to red-eyed, hygiene-starved despair."

Audience viewership

The marketing analytics firm Jumpshot determined the first season was the second-most viewed Netflix season in the first 30 days after it premiered, garnering 48 percent of the viewers that the second season of Daredevil received, which was the most viewed season according to Jumpshot. The series also showed an 18 percent increase in week-over-week viewership from week one to week two. Jumpshot, which "analyzes click-stream data from an online panel of more than 100 million consumers", looked at the viewing behavior and activity of the company's U.S. members, factoring in the relative number of U.S. Netflix viewers who watched at least one episode of the season. According to Nielsen, the premiere episode of the second season drew 6.08 million viewers in the U.S. in the first three days of its release. It also revealed that a significant part of its audience were young – aged 34 or younger (75%) – and female (65%) – with males representing 35 percent of viewers. The second season became the eighth most watched English-language television series on Netflix, with 496.1 million hours viewed.

Concerns over depictions of depression and suicide

The release of the show caused public concern about the risk of suicide contagion among teenagers, particularly in those who have suicidal thoughts. The portrayal of sensitive content such as teen suicide, self-harm, rape and bullying raised criticism, especially for its graphic content, primarily the scene in which Hannah kills herself. Some researchers and medical professionals argue that the series violated guidelines for depicting suicide in the media and might trigger "imitative" behaviors among high school students and vulnerable people.

Prior to the series' release, scholars had studied the influence of the media on suicide for decades. Evidence to support the existence of a relationship between fictional media exposure and suicide behaviors remained weak and a strict causality had never been established. The effect that fiction can have on suicidal thoughts and behaviors is probably smaller than that of other psychological and social risk factors for suicide. It has been argued that censoring fiction may do more harm than good.

After the series' release, a study published in the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry found that suicide among teenagers rose by 28.9 percent in the month after Netflix launched the show.

Criticism

Several health professionals, educators and advocates linked the show to self-harm and suicide threats among young people. This community also expressed major concerns about the series romanticizing suicide, not providing adequate resources at the conclusion of each episode, targeting a young vulnerable audience, and painting mental health professionals as unhelpful and not worth seeing. Mental health experts are also educating the general public on what to do in the situations Hannah Baker goes through, disseminating accurate information surrounding teen suicide, depression, and youth that experience traumatic events through research surrounding the show and mental health resources for help-seeking youth.

The release of 13 Reasons Why corresponded with between 900,000 and 1.5 million more suicide-related Google searches in the United States, including a 26 percent increase in searches for "how to commit suicide", an 18 percent increase for "commit suicide", and a 9 percent increase for "how to kill yourself". After an initial spike in calls to the Crisis Text Line after the first episode, there was an overall reduction in crisis call volume for the remainder of the series. Although the link between searching for suicide information and suicide risk is unclear, increases in self-harm admissions to one children's hospital were observed.

The Australian youth mental health service for 12–25 year-olds, Headspace, issued a warning in late April 2017 over the graphic content featured in the series, due to the increased number of calls to the service following the series' release in the country. However, Netflix demonstrably complied with the Australian viewer ratings system by branding the series as "MA15+" when streamed via its own interface. They accompanied its presentation with additional warnings and viewer advice, and ensured that counselling referrals were included and not easily skipped at the conclusion of each episode. Each warning voice over is read by a different cast member at the end of the episode, with Katherine Langford reading in her native Australian accent in her voice-overs.

In response to the graphic nature of the series and New Zealand's high youth suicide rate, which was the highest among the 34 OECD countries during 2009 to 2012, the Office of Film & Literature Classification in the country created a new rating, "RP18", allowing individuals aged 18 and over to watch the series alone and those below having to watch it with supervision from a parent or guardian.

Netflix response

Netflix responded to the criticism surrounding the series by adding strong advisory warnings prior to the ninth, twelfth, and thirteenth episodes in the first season, the first two due to rape and the last due to the suicide scene. In July 2019, before the release of season three, Netflix edited the suicide scene of the first-season finale. Originally, the episode included a bloody depiction of Hannah slitting her wrists in a bathtub.

Executive producer Selena Gomez, in defense of the controversy surrounding the series, stated:

We stayed very true to the book and that's initially what Jay Asher created was a beautifully tragic, complicated yet suspenseful story and I think that's what we wanted to do ... We wanted to do it justice and yeah the backlash is gonna come no matter what. It's not an easy subject to talk about, but I'm very fortunate with how it's doing.

Beyond the Reasons

With the release of the first season of the series, Netflix also released 13 Reasons Why: Beyond the Reasons, an aftershow documentary television film. The 29-minute documentary featured the cast and crew of the series and mental health professionals discussing their experiences working on the series and dealing with different issues including bullying, depression and sexual assault. Two more Beyond the Reasons specials were released with the second and third seasons respectively.

Soundtrack

Compilation soundtracks have been released for the first three seasons, as well as score albums featuring the show's original score by Eskmo.