'Adolescence' Has Struck an Exposed Nerve in the Manosphere

Adolescence is quietly on track to become the most-watched Netflix limited series ever, surpassing last year’s Baby Reindeer. And for good reason. It’s an excellent show. Interestingly, both series had modest debuts before gaining traction through word of mouth.

Why Adolescence has struck such a chord is more complicated to pinpoint. The technical feat — each episode is a single continuous shot — is impressive, though sometimes distracting, but unlikely to be the main draw. It’s not a whodunit—- we know early on that Jamie killed a 13-year-old classmate, so the intrigue is not there. The real mystery is his motivation.

The show’s popularity likely stems from its willingness to directly confront the modern manosphere, something few series have attempted. (Though it’s worth noting that The Pitt also touches on it, albeit less bluntly.) For many parents, the show hits a nerve. They’re watching not just out of concern for their sons, who may fall into these toxic communities, but out of fear for their daughters, who face the consequences. That concern is well-founded when you consider that this, or worse, is where some of those communities lead.

As Jenn pointed out, the series is as much about parenting as it is about the manosphere. But some men — white men, in particular — have reacted defensively, reframing the show’s themes through a racial lens in order to dismiss them. In doing so, they’ve circulated false claims that the show’s creators originally depicted Jamie as a Black boy, only to “race swap” him into a white character to push “anti-white” propaganda.

That narrative gained traction after someone on X — amplified by Elon Musk — claimed that the show was “anti-white” and that it portrayed Jamie as having been radicalized by the red pill movement after they changed the character from a Black migrant to a white teen.

It’s a lie, clearly. Jack Thorne, who co-created the series with Stephen Graham (who also stars as Jamie’s father), was clear in his response. “We’re not making a point about race with this,” Thorne said on The News Agents podcast. “We are making a point about masculinity. We’re trying to get inside a problem. We’re not saying this is one thing or another. We’re saying this is about boys.”

Adolescence is uncomfortable to watch because it is supposed to be. But the backlash is less about the show, and far more about the mirror it’s holding up to those who are pissed off about it. And as they are wont to do, they’ll make every effort to muddy the waters, but for the millions of parents and teens who have seen it, the message about the dangers of the manosphere may have already seeped through.