“I remember being really nervous just because it’s such a traumatic scene that real people have gone through, and I think that that’s what needs to be remembered - that real people have gone through this.” “As we did with the sexual assault in Season 1, we wanted that scene to do justice to what young men actually experience in those moments and try not to smooth it out,” Yorkey said.įor Druid, acting in the scene proved harrowing.
The series expanded the conversation to include male sexual assault, Yorkey said, because the writers felt, in doing research, that male-on-male sexual assault was “kind of an epidemic.” “I think there are some incredibly important discussions to be had from this show.” “Hannah was a victim of sexual assault and what happened to her at that point in her life … it wasn’t something she could live with,” the actress said. Langford, whose character’s presence this season is seen in flashbacks and as an apparition of sorts, said Hannah’s story is an example of why such stories need to be told. But it’s crazy how much has changed in the past year.” “They don’t believe the survivor and just side with the attacker. “I think it just parallels what happens in the real world - how people victim-blame,” Boe said. But she also remembered how her character had been vilified by some. The 21-year-old actress said she received hundreds of messages last year from young viewers who identified with Jessica’s story as a sexual assault victim.
īrian Yorkey, the showrunner of “13 Reasons Why”Īs Boe sees it, the fortuitious development presents an opportunity to do some good. When we cover things with silence, we tend to cover them with stigma and with shame. The ways it systematically enabled the way insitutions, whether intentionally or through inaction, allow it to continue and to continue as a kept secret.”
Not only sexual assault, but serial sexual assault. “And they’re very much issues that are central to Season 2. “We watched as these issues really kind of exploded onto the scene in our culture,” Yorkey said. The new episodes arrive as Hollywood - and society at large - continues to feel the ripple effects triggered by the recent spate of sexual harrassment and assault allegations against powerful individuals.
“But when we cover things with silence, we tend to cover them with stigma and with shame and when we don’t talk about things, people who experience it feel incredibly isolated and don’t have any sense that anyone will ever understand what they’ve been through.” “I understand the temptation to want to shield from everything,” said Yorkey, who is not a parent. Yorkey stands by his decision to spotlight troubling themes and elements in the series.
We urge parents and schools to be alert and on guard in the weeks and months ahead.” Said PTC program director Melissa Henson, who watched the entire second season, in a statement, “For kids who are already at risk, who are being bullied or abused, the show may only serve to trigger those feelings and create dangerous real-life circumstances. The Parents Television Council, an L.A.-based advocacy group that monitors media decency, called on Netflix to cancel the series.