<i>Adolescence</i> Season 2: What to Know

Netflix released the four-part British mini series Adolescence on March 13 and it landed on the most-watched list by the weekend, according to the BBC. The dramatic mini series has a lot of draws, beginning with its unique approach to cinematography, filming every episode in one continuous take. And though Adolescence was not based off of a specific true crime story, the thriller touched on numerous touchstone cultural moments—including incel culture and masculinity—that made it hit especially close to home.

So, will the series get a second season? Here’s what we know so far.

As of right now, Netflix has not greenlit the show for season 2. It was initially intended to be a mini series, which are traditionally one-offs for the streaming service. However, Netflix has upgraded other mini series to multi-season shows due to their popularity, like they did with Beef. It’s not impossible they’ll make some changes here.

In fact, Adolescence’s production company, Plan B, is already talking to season 1 director Philip Barantini about the “next iteration” of the show, Plan B co-presidents Dede Gardner and Jeremy Kleiner told Deadline.

They are discussing ways to “widen the aperture, stay true to its DNA [and] not be repetitive,” Gardner added. They are also hoping to team up again with series co-creator Stephen Graham, who starred in season 1.

Ahead of the series premiere, Graham told Tudum, “One of our aims was to ask, ‘What is happening to our young men these days, and what are the pressures they face from their peers, from the internet, and from social media?’ And the pressures that come from all of those things are as difficult for kids here as they are the world over.”

That’s certainly a thesis that could be behind a lot of new stories.

The first season follows the story of fictional 13-year-old Jamie Miller, who is accused of a violent crime, blowing apart his family and community.

Co-creator and star Stephen Graham said in an interview with Birmingham Live that though Jamie’s story is fictional, it was inspired by real stories of crime and knife violence.

“I’d read an article in the paper about a young boy stabbing a young girl, and it made me feel a bit cold,” he said. “Then about three of four months later, there was a piece on the news about a young boy who’d stabbed a young girl.”

He also told Tudum that the first story “shocked” him.

“And then it happened again, and it happened again, and it happened again,” he explained. “I really just wanted to shine a light on it, and ask, ‘Why is this happening today? What’s going on? How have we come to this?’ ”

Adolescence also mentions podcaster Andrew Tate, known for his misogynistic and alt-right viewpoints and influence over young men, particularly within “involuntarily celibate” subcultures. Graham told GQ that his co-writer and co-creator Jack Thorne focused on the “incel stuff” with more knowledge of online radicalization of youths. His daughter, Gracie, first explained to him who Tate was.

“I thought, well, I’m a semi-put-together 51-year-old man who knows a little bit of who I am and what I’m about,” he said. “So what if I was a 13-year-old boy who didn’t have the greatest relationship with my father, didn’t really have that solid connection with a role model, and was finding my feet out there?”

In another interview with Rolling Stone UK, he talked about how he was navigated to Tate-like propaganda after watching a workout video, making him even more aware of the issue.

“I was looking online at a workout thing that our [son] Alfie sent me, and it was a good workout,” he said. “Three or four days later, the algorithm—which I don’t understand— showed me the same gentleman again, and he was telling me his misogynistic opinions and views.”

There’s plenty to dive into here, whether the show would choose to continue with Jamie’s story, tell it from the perspective of his victim and her family, or move on to another community grappling with similar incidents.

If season 2 decided to stick with Jamie’s story, Owen Cooper would need to reprise his role as Jamie Miller, and Stephen Graham would return as his dad with Christine Tremarco as his mom. There might also be a return for Mark Stanley as Paul Barlow, Jamie’s lawyer, and Ashley Walters as DI Luke Bascombe and Faye Marsay as DS Frank. But it’s still unclear if they’ll return, or if the series will focus on a different subject instead.

This story will be updated.