Adolescence writer Jack Thorne says he doesn’t want a second series of the hit Netflix show for two key reasons.
The four-part drama follows 13-year-old Jamie Miller, played by newcomer Owen Cooper, who is accused of murdering his classmate, Katie.
Co-written and created with Stephen Graham from This Is England, the one-shot series has received rave reviews and ignited conversations around incel (involuntary celibate) culture, social media and bullying.
In an interview with ITV’s This Morning, Mr Thorne, 46, was asked if he would create a second series, focussing on Katie.
“I don’t think we’re the right people to tell Katie’s story,” he replied.
“I think there are other makers out there that could tell beautiful dramas about Katie or girls like Katie, and that those shows should be made.
“Our aim was to try and tell Jamie’s story as fully as we possibly could, and maybe trying to tell her story would dilute that in some way and maybe we would be inadequate for that task.”
The other reason there wouldn’t be a series two was that “Jamie’s story is finished”, Mr Thorne said.
“I don’t think there’s anywhere more we can take Jamie, so I don’t think there is a series two.
“We’d love to explore the one shot format in another way. We’d love to tell other stories with it, but I don’t think a series two of Adolescence is quite right for us.”
Adolescence has been at the top of the most-watched programmes on Netflix globally and has prompted questions in Parliament.
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The series has received backing from Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, and its creators have accepted an invitation to a parliamentary meeting by Labour MP Josh MacAlister to discuss online safety with MPs.
Mr Thorne said the response to the drama has been “overwhelming” and added that people have told him “I’ve had conversations with my kids I’ve never had before because of this show”.
