‘Adolescence’ co-creator responds to claims that Netflix series race-swapped storyline

The co-creator of the popular Netflix crime drama Adolescence is shutting down online accusations that the hit miniseries “race-swapped” its storyline, stating that the idea couldn’t be “further from the truth.”

During a recent visit to the News Agents podcast, Jack Thorne was asked by host Jon Sopel about the backlash the series has received from online commenters who criticized its decision to focus on a white teenager involved in a knife crime when they claim “it’s mostly Black kids who commit knife crimes” in the U.K. The series — which was written, produced, and created by Thorne and actor Stephen Graham — opens with 13-year-old Jamie (Owen Cooper) being arrested on suspicion of murdering his classmate Katie before exploring his motivations and the greater impacts of the case on the local community.  

“They’ve [commenters] claimed that Stephen and I based it on a story, or another story, and so they’re saying we race-swapped it, because we were basing it on here, and then it ended up there, and everything else. Nothing is further from the truth,” Thorne said. “I have told a lot of real-life stories in my time, and I know the harm that can come when you take elements of a real-life story and put it on screen and the people aren’t expecting it. There is no part of this that’s based on a true story. Not one single part.”

When asked for his reaction to the wave of criticism, Thorne responded, “That it should have been a Black boy? Well, it’s absurd to say that this is only committed by Black boys. It’s absurd. It’s not true. And history shows a lot of cases of kids from all races committing these crimes.”

Thorne further emphasized that he and Graham were “not making a point about race” with the series, but rather a point about masculinity. “We’re trying to get inside a problem,” he continued. “We’re not saying this is one thing or another. We’re saying this is about boys.”

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Thorne’s statement comes after Elon Musk reshared a post on his X account that called Adolescence “anti-white propaganda” and wrongfully claimed that the series was based on the 2024 Southport stabbings, which left three young girls dead after attending a Taylor Swift-themed dance and yoga class. The comment also falsely alleged that Thorne and Graham then “race swapped [sic] the actual killer from a black man/migrant to a white boy and the story has it so he was radicalized online by the red pill movement,” adding, “Just the absolute state of anti-white propaganda.” 

Musk, who reposted the message to his 218 million followers, responded, “Wow.” 

In reality, Adolescence isn’t based on any specific singular incident, with Graham telling Rolling Stone U.K. that the show is actually inspired by “a number of incidents where young boys were stabbing and killing young girls” in the U.K.

He continued, “They’d happened up and down the country, and my objective was merely to ask: ‘What’s going on? Why is this happening? Can we just have a look at it because this kind of thing didn’t happen when I was a young lad.’”

Adolescence is streaming now on Netflix. Watch Thorne address the online criticism toward the series in the clip above.