13 Reasons Why's season 2 is facing major backlash for one of its most brutal scenes.
Major spoiler alert. TW: rape.
In finale "Bye,” school photographer Tyler Down is violently raped by three male student-athletes with a broken mop handle. He's seen bleeding from the rear and shows up the next day ready to carry out a mass shooting. Now the show's creator, Brian Yorkey, is speaking out about the decision to film and release the horrifying rape scene.
"We’re committed on this show to telling truthful stories about things that young people go through in as unflinching a way as we can," he said in a statement to Vulture. "We fully understand that that means some of the scenes in the show will be difficult to watch. I think Netflix has helped provide viewers with lots of resources for understanding that this may not be the show for everybody, and also resources for people who do watch it and are troubled and need help."
He continued: "But the fact is that, as intense as that scene is, and as strong as are or [sic]reactions to it may be, it doesn’t even come close to the pain experienced by the people who actually go through these things. When we talk about something being 'disgusting' or hard to watch, often that means we are attaching shame to the experience. We would rather not be confronted with it. We would rather it stay out of our consciousness. This is why these kinds of assaults are underreported. This is why victims have a hard time seeking help. We believe that talking about it is so much better than silence."
Last year, The Associated Pressuncovered 17,000 reports of sexual assault cases in schools. One of which was nearly identical to Down's story in the Netflix show. There are numerousother cases as well. On the other hand, viewers are demanding the show be canceled or removed from the streaming platform.
