I think there’s a universal understanding for everyone involved that they must have had some sort of heart in it and heart in the story. People would stop me in the street and ask for a hug, which is interesting because I always thought I played a bad guy in a way. It definitely became a huge conduit for people who were close to me and people who were reaching out to me on Instagram. It’s not easy so it shouldn’t be easy to watch either.Īfter the show went to air, did fans or people from your own life reach out to you reach out to you with their experiences, seeing the show as a conduit to talk? I think if you talk to people whose children have lost their lives or have witnessed someone who has lost their lives, it is anything but not graphic. Not to say that’s why we made it that way, but it is a story and we’re trying to be honest with it.

We’re making a show, hopefully, for relevant and impactful reasons, but also for entertainment. I think people have odd expectations with television shows where they expect us to be doctors. We have not skated around anything but be realistic. To me, the first season was not about that one moment when she takes her life - the whole show deals with why someone would do it, which I think was more important and relevant than that one, as people say, graphic depiction. I think it’s good that what we’re doing is a little bit wrong because, partly, it keeps viewers coming in. I think for the most part, in a smart way, we didn’t ignore the controversy but used it as fuel.

Did the writers talk to the cast about how you would tackle that in season two? WITH the second season of hugely popular Netflix drama 13 Reasons Why dropping this weekend, we picked up the phone to speak to cast member Brandon Flynn.įlynn, who plays Justin on the show, opens up about the controversy around the show’s depiction of youth suicide, how 13 Reasons Why fits into the #metoo movement and his regrets about his own experiences in high school.ġ3 Reasons Why became such a talking point when its first season came out, partly because of the backlash from organisations concerned about suicide contagion.

13 reasons why season 2 controversy