Netflix's YOU 20 Details To Know About The Show We All Just Binge-Watched
Who doesn't love a new series to binge on? Well, late last year, Netflix's hit show You was all everybody was and still is talking about! Who else is guilty of being hooked? Who else watched every episode all in one day?
The TV series is about a New York bookstore manager named Joe Goldberg who falls in love with a customer, Guinevere Beck, and quickly becomes so obsessed with her, which ultimately leads to stalking her every move. The hit show explores the blurred lines between love and obsession, and hero and villain which, is why fans couldn't stop watching it-its storyline got fans glued to the screen!
Set in modern times, the series touches a lot on social media and how dangerous it can be, plus the lack of privacy it often results in. Series one contained ten episodes which followed Joe on his journey with Beck. The ups, the downs, and everything in-between.
Penn Badgley-a fan favorite from his Gossip Girl days-narrates the entire series as his character Joe, which, he admitted to Orange Magazine TV, meant he had fewer lines to memorize.
Here are 20 things that all fans of the show should know about the new Netflix sensation!
20 The Series Is Based On A Novel Of The Same Name
Named "thriller of the year" by the Daily Mail and "hypnotic" by Stephen King, the series goes by the same name of the novel the show is based on.
Written by Caroline Kepnes, the story is admired now by millions more.
The book that spans the genres of Thriller, Suspense, Psychological Fiction originally came out in 2014 and has been re-issued since with a new cover. A 2014 hardback cover is now hard to find and is being sold by Amazon users starting from £296. This goes to show how impactful the series has become and is continuing to show public interest.
19 It Originally Aired On Lifetime But With Little Fanfare
We might all know You as a hit series now, however, that's not how it all started. Most people might have watched it on Netflix but it originally aired elsewhere first. Lifetime, an American television channel, released the official trailer for the series months before it premiered. In the US, the first episode aired on Lifetime on September 9, 2018. In May 2018, it was announced that Netflix would have the exclusive international broadcast rights. The series flubbed at gathering in a million watchers per episode, which might come to some peoples surprise as Lifetime is a big platform. Then, the channel passed on making the second series.
18 But With The Magic Of Netflix, It Brought In 40 Million!
After the last episode aired on Lifetime in November 2018, the show was sent to Netflix where every episode was available to stream from December 26.
The little-talked-about show soon became a trending topic over the end of last year and in the new year.
With the series being on Netflix less than a month, See What's Next tweeted: "Joe isn't the only one watching: @YouNetflix is on track to be viewed by more than 40 million members in its first four weeks on Netflix!". You has been a topic of discussion ever since it hit Netflix worldwide and has become one of the most successful series on their network.
17 The Character Paco Is Not In The Book
Young actor Luca Padovan plays the role of Paco, who is Joe's young neighbor. As we have already established, this series is based on the novel of the same name, however, Paco was added into the show as an extra character. The reason the producers added in this character was that they wanted to show another side to Joe. He might be a stalker, he might be a creep, but there is a caring side to him too. "Paco has been a character that illuminates the best, most compassionate side of Joe,” Sera told Variety. “He educates Paco, he gives Paco a sandwich when he's hungry, he keeps Paco safe. And then [Paco] does this incredible thing in the finale [in return]." Paco brings out the best out of Joe, despite us seeing the worst too.
16 You Might Recognise Elizabeth Lail From Dead Of Summer
26-year-old Elizabeth Lail may seem familiar to you guys and this might be why; she played the starring role as Amy Hughes in the 2016 Freeform show Dead of Summer.
She also had a recurring role as Anna in the fourth season of the ABC adventure fantasy television series Once Upon a Time, meaning she is no stranger to appearing in television series.
Her acting debut was in 2011 but her first main role was in the US supernatural horror series, which was set in the late '80s. Freeform canceled the series after the first season, but the reviews for it got better each week. Now, her role as Beck is probably her most well-known.
15 There Is A Hidden Meaning Behind Beck's Nirvana Tee
In the pilot episode, at Mooney's Book Store, Beck meets Joe for the first time. She purchases Desperate Characters by author Paula Fox, who was a US author of novels for adults and children and of two memoirs. Paula is the grandmother to '90s Grunge star Courtney Love, who was the lead singer in band Hole, who went on to marry the late Kurt Cobain, Nirvana's frontman. Paula passed away at the age of 93 in March 2017. Beck is later seen wearing a Nirvana T-shirt in a future episode. Also, the store nearby to Mooney's on Manhattan's York Avenue is called Nirvana. A little coincidence?
14 Elizabeth Was Hesitant Toward Playing The Role Of Beck At First
In the SAG-AFTRA Foundation, Elizabeth explained that she was hesitant to play the role of Beck but having spoken to Sara, the producer reassured her. Elizabeth explained that she looked through the script and didn't just want to play the role of "the girl."
She went on to say that half of the directors for the show were women and that she felt they were smart and that she could put her trust in them, which is why she went ahead with the role.
In an interview for The Paley Center, she admits when she first auditioned for the role, she wasn't aware of what would happen to her character until she started reading the book after she got the callback.
13 Elizabeth And Penn Had To Attend An Eight-Hour Safety Course For The NYC Subway Tracks Scene
In the first episode, there is a scene where Beck falls onto the subway tracks, and Joe watches it happen. Beck drops her phone on the tracks, too, but Joe is trying to help her get up while she is distracted by her phone as the next train is approaching. He saves her and takes her home. He manages to steal her phone in the taxi and continues to stalk her even more with her device. In the BUILD series interview, the actors explained that they both had to do an eight-hour course just to shoot that one scene. Sera Gamble said in the same interview that actors aren't just expected to be thrown on real train tracks due to safety concerns.
12 Shay Mitchell, From PLL, Plays A Relative Of A Famous Author
Shay Mitchell plays the role of Peach Salinger, who is one of Beck's longtime best friends and very wealthy. She is the distant cousin of famed writer J.D. Salinger. Her character is psychotic and controlling. Mitchell is an established actress and is most well known for playing Emily Fields in the Freeform series Pretty Little Liars for seven years. Her role as Emily gave her multiple award nominations at the Teen Choice Awards. She won Cast To Watch at the Young Hollywood Awards shared with Troian Bellisario, Lucy Hale, and Ashley Benson in 2011. She also appeared in Nick Jonas' music video for "Under You" in 2016.
11 Penn Badgley Wasn't Fully Educated On Social Media Before Taking This Role
Us '90s and millennial kids are so used to knowing everybody using social media that we forget that some people aren't as invested in it. The series You contains a lot of social media footage as Joe stalks characters in the show by looking up their profiles on various platforms.
In a BUILD Series interview, Penn admitted he only started getting his social media accounts set up around four years ago.
In the same interview, he discussed he had never heard of Tumblr until he was shooting for the series. Shay Mitchell, who plays Peach, would joke on set about his lack of social media knowledge since the show covers so much about it.
10 You're Not Actually Supposed To Like Joe, The Character
Joe Goldberg is a stalker and there's no denying that. He is seen stalking Beck pretty much from the start. At first, it kind of seems he's trying to protect her from people he doesn't think are good for her in her life, but as the episodes progress, it's clear to see Joe is somewhat awkward and off-kilter. He might have feelings for Beck and might actually want what's best for her, but anyone who hurts her friends just because he isn't fond of them is never good. Penn took to his social media to express to fans that Goldberg has problems. He also agreed with a fan that called other fans romancing over his character a bit odd. This became a big discussion on social media at the beginning of January.
9 It Was Developed By Two Successful Television Producers And Writers
This hit show obviously needed talented producers and writers to do the novel justice and that they did! In fact, two people developed the show!
Those two people would be Greg Berlanti and Sera Gamble.
Berlanti's portfolio boasts work from Dawson's Creek, Riverdale, and Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. Gamble is best known for her work with Supernatural and The Magicians. Both of them were born in New York. Greg made his feature film directorial debut with a romantic comedyin 2000 and Sera was given the job as a writer and story editor on the CW series Supernatural after she was hired as a writer on the short-lived ABC series Eyes where only four out of the 12 episodes aired.
8 The Series Has Been In The Works Since 2015
The novel was released in 2014, however, in February 2015 soon after it was published, it was announced that Greg Berlanti and Sera Gamble would develop a series based on it. With this announcement, it was said that Berlanti and Gamble were going to be the scriptwriters and Berlanti as the pilot director. Lifetime purchased the show two years later and was put on fast-track development. It's kinda crazy to think this show was in the works for three years, right? Clearly, all the time spent on it has paid off since it's gained a huge following that will continue to grow.
7 It Got A 91% Rating On Rotten Tomatoes
A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services ranging from films, books, TV shows, software, and many more.
Rotten Tomatoes is a US-based review-aggregation website for film and television and You got a high score of 91%, which means a lot of praise!
The show has a "certified fresh rating" on the site with 44 reviews, with an average rating of 6.95/10. Christina Radish of entertainment website Collider named Joe Goldberg as the "Best TV Villain" of 2018. Another review website, Metacritic, weighed out the average of 16 scores and it got assigned 74 out of 100 indicating "generally favorable reviews."
6 Hari Nef Plays The Role Of Beck's Rival Student, Blythe
US actress, model, and writer Hari Nef plays the role of Blythe. She is based in Los Angeles but made her runway debut at New York Fashion Week Spring 2015. Known for speaking about social issues, she is also known for her role as Gittel in US comedy-drama web television series Transparent.
In You, she has a recurring role appearing in a total of four episodes, and her part is as a rival graduate student to Beck.
Her character is everything Beck wants to be, however, Blythe is encouraging and pushes Beck without a hidden motive. She just wants her to do well, which isn't always the case with other characters.
5 Beck's Therapist Is Played By John Stamos
Dr. Nicky, who is Beck's therapist is portrayed by John Stamos. When doing an interview with SAG-AFTRA Foundation, Stamos admitted that he found it hard trying not to fall into his old comedy ways when playing this part. He tried to be as serious as possible, as that's what his character's job was required to do. In the same interview, John expressed his character's technique of writing cards and drawing was actually based off on what his real-life therapist does. John's other well-known work includes his roles as Blackie Parrish on the ABC television series General Hospital and Jesse Katsopolis on the ABC sitcom Full House.
4 Penn, Also, Was Hesitant Of Playing The Role Of Joe
Like Elizabeth, Penn was also hesitant of playing the role of Joe but for different reasons. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, he explains: "I didn't want to do it - it was too much. I was conflicted with the nature of the role. If this is a love story, what is it saying? It's not an average show; it's a social experiment."
In a Q&A interview with SAG-AFTRA Foundation, he also explains that he watched some episodes of You just to see how Joe was coming across on screen as he didn't want the character to come across as likable.
He wanted to make him as weird as possible. He hadn't ever done this with his previous roles. He said to BUILD that he was aware that this role would draw comparisons to Dan Humphrey, a character he played in Gossip Girl.
3 The Basement Of The Book Store Scenes Was Filmed At A Separate Location
The bookstore Joe works in is called Logos Bookstore in real life-however, in the show, it's been re-named to Mooney's just for the series. Other than the name, not much else about the book store is visually that different which you can look up on Google Maps or visit in real life. The specialty bookstore can be found on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, New York. It doesn't have a cage to lock people up and drive people crazy in. The basement scenes throughout the series were filmed at a separate location in the Bronx, New York.
2 It's Getting A Second Season!
With huge worldwide success, it would be silly for the show not to get a second but it's all good-because it is! On July 26, 2018, before the first series had aired, Lifetime announced a second series would be in the works. However, Lifetime will not be airing the second series, Netflix, who made the show a hit will.
The second series is yet to have an official name however, the follow-up to the You novel is titled Hidden Bodies.
No release date confirmed either but we seriously can't wait. Penn tweeted that the reaction of fans falling in love with his character Joe had motivated him to make him more unlikeable in season two.
1 The Location Is Moving For Its Second Series
Season one was filmed in New York City because the book was based in New York. Therefore for season two, it's going to move locations. Hidden Bodies, written by Caroline Kepnes was set in Los Angeles, meaning, the second series will move there. This has been confirmed by the developer of the show, Sara Gamble. The series has relocated its production to California, where LA is California's most popular city. This has been done to take advantage of the tax incentives provided by the California Film Commission under its "Program 2.0" initiative. Season two will move on to Netflix as a "Netflix Original" which the first wasn't.
