Netflix’s number one new drama Adolescence has come under fire from fans of influencer and podcaster Andrew Tate, 38, following the release of its four episodes.
The series, billed as a “why-dunnit” rather than a “who-dunnit”, delves into what may have motivated young teenage boy Jamie Miller (played by Owen Cooper) to violently murder schoolgirl, Katie (Emilia Holliday), after his arrest.
Adolescence explores the impact that Jamie’s arrest has on his family while also delving into the contentious world of social media and “incel” culture, particularly their effect on young males.
The drama isn’t based on any specific real-life incident, but lead actor and co-creator Graham has admitted that real-life crimes of a similar nature – involving young boys killing young girls – inspired the series.
Despite being a fictional plot, Adolescence has been lauded by critics and viewers for its hard-hitting realism and even name-checking self-proclaimed misogynist Tate within its dialogue.
Tate’s name is mentioned during a discussion in episode two at Jamie’s school as DI Luke Bascombe (Ashley Walters) and DS Misha Frank (Faye Marsay) attempt to decipher social media interactions and “incel” connotations on the arrested teen’s Instagram page.
Stephen Graham’s character Eddie, who’s Jamie’s dad, alludes to Tate in the season finale when he says an unnamed influencer popped up on his phone spreading harmful rhetoric without him realising.
Since its release, the drama has been widely praised by viewers and critics alike, with popular review aggregate site Rotten Tomatoes giving it a 98 percent score.
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However, one pocket of viewers who weren’t impressed with Graham and co-creator Jack Thorne’s storytelling was Tate’s fans.
One fan reached out to the influencer directly on X, seemingly celebrating the comparisons between Tate and the character of Jamie by typing: “You, Andrew Tate got mentioned by coppers in this new series on Netflix, you are famous again son. Yeah, this kid is soooo f***ing you. You will love him. #adolescencenetflix #Adolescence.”
A second weighed in to stick up for the influencer following the show’s release: “They’ll do anything to drag Andrew Tate’s name through the mud. Now they’re trying to link him to a fictional murder in Netflix’s new series Adolescence? This is beyond insane—blatant character assassination. The media’s agenda knows no bounds. #Adolescence.”
“That #Adolescence on Netflix is just utter woke s***e,” a third supporter penned. “Trying to depict that young boys will kill young girls for rejecting them. All toxic masculinity s***e and blaming Andrew Tate. Just an excuse to paint men/boys as bad people from a young age.”
Complaints kept on coming from a fourth who also reached out to Tate directly: “#Adolescence mentioning @Cobratate @TateTheTalisman is the most ridiculous thing, what do you want… The show was s*** the ending was s*** the whole season is s***.”
And another, who even appeared to enjoy the series, still rushed to Tate’s defence: “Finished that adolescence on Netflix. Half decent but the whole thing is clearly some toxic masculinity b******s. Blaming Andrew Tate for a lad murdering a little girl, all a bit weird.” (sic)
Tate is yet to publicly address the Netflix drama or the mention of his name, at the time of writing.
However, the vast majority of online feedback the show has received has been from viewers who are ardent in their opposition to the comments made by Tate’s fans, with thousands commending the drama.
Lead actor Cooper is just one aspect of the series to come under particular praise for his flawless portrayal of Jamie, blending disarming vulnerability with unnerving terror throughout.
Graham, Walters and Erin Doherty, who plays Jamie’s psychologist in episode three, as well as the rest of the cast, have also been on the receiving end of plaudits for their portrayals.
Director Philip Barantini, who baffled the likes of Jeremy Clarkson with his impressive filming techniques, is another member of the crew whose work has garnered recognition.
Speaking earlier this month about the show, Graham opened up about the influence behind the series but stopped short of citing Tate as a direct factor.
“It started when I read an article, and it was an article about a young boy who’d stabbed a young girl to death, and it just, you know, it made me feel cold,” he told Chris Moyles on Radio X.
“And then a couple of months later, there was a piece on the news, and it was about a young boy who’d stabbed a young girl to death, and if I’m really honest with you, they hurt my heart.
“And these two incidents were opposite ends of the country. And I just thought, ‘Why? Why is this happening?’ Not just because I’m a father, but I think any kind of human being with an ounce of moral compass can look at that kind of situation and think, ‘What’s happening? What’s going on with society today that we’re in?'”
Adding that he had the saying “it takes a village to raise a child” ringing his ears, Graham went on: “I just wanted to create something that kind of looked at it from that perspective, but also looked at it like, look, maybe we are all slightly accountable in some way, be that parents, be that school, be that government, community, society.
“When we were kids, we didn’t have these kinds of things. But today, the internet is as much of a teacher and a parent to our children as we can be. Do you know what I mean? And that was kind of where it came from.”