Netflix has renewed its controversial teen drama “13 Reasons Why” for a second season. The announcement, posted to Netflix’s Twitter account Sunday morning, comes amid a debate around whether the show glamorizes suicide.
The drama is based on Jay Asher’s 2007 novel about Hannah Baker, a young girl who kills herself and leaves behind 13 audio tapes detailing how the actions (and inaction) of her classmates led to her death.
Suicide prevention advocates, school psychologists and educators have expressed concerns that the show — which features graphic depictions of sexual assault and Hannah’s suicide — may lead vulnerable young viewers to harm themselves.
Though Netflix does not release viewership numbers, “13 Reasons Why” is undoubtedly popular. Variety reported last month that the drama, which counts pop singer and actress Selena Gomez as an executive producer, was the most tweeted-about show this year. “13 Reasons Why” has also earned a fair share of critical acclaim and currently boasts a solid 85% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, though it’s worth noting that Washington Post TV critic Hank Stuever was not among those praising the show.
“There are 13 episodes lasting 13 super-sullen hours — a passive-aggressive, implausibly meandering, poorly written and awkwardly acted effort that is mainly about miscommunication, delivering no more wisdom or insight about depression, bullying and suicide than one of those old ‘ABC Afterschool Specials’ people now mock for being so corny,” Stuever wrote.
The creator and producers have defended the show’s graphic content in media interviews and a featurette called “Beyond the Reasons,” which is also available on Netflix. “We worked very hard not to be gratuitous, but we did want it to be painful to watch because we wanted it to be very clear that there is nothing, in any way, worthwhile about suicide,” creator Brian Yorkey says in the featurette.
For its part, Netflix told The Post that the show had “opened up a dialogue.”
“Entertainment has always been the ultimate connector and we hope that ’13 Reasons Why’ can serve as a catalyst for conversation,” the streaming company said in a statement provided to The Post last week.
Netflix has not yet announced a premiere date for Season 2, which would take the story beyond the premise of Asher’s novel. There isn’t much to glean from the 21-second teaser posted by Netflix and Gomez either. But given the buzz around the show, it’s likely that the obscurity is intentional.
