13 Reasons Why has been the most talked about show on Netflix over the past year. Produced by Selena Gomez, the show follows the trail of 13 teenagers as they uncover the reasons for their friend Hannah’s suicide. Heavily influenced by the negative impact of social media, teenage bullying and sexual assault, the show brings to light an unexplored side of leisure television. Speaking to Justin Prentice who plays Bryce Walker – Hannah’s sexual abuser – FAULT uncovers whether it’s beneficial or irresponsible to expose a young audience to explicit suicide.
 

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What were your initial thoughts going into a show like 13 Reasons Why with such a heavy character to play?

It’s always rewarding to play such meaty characters. I was excited for the challenge. I was also thrilled to be working with Brian Yorkey, Tom McCarthy, Selena Gomez, and Anonymous Content. Each has cemented themselves as power plays in the industry, so that alone were ample reason to climb aboard the show.

 

Having Selena Gomez as Executive Producer on the show – did you have any preconceived ideas in regards to the end result and what was your overall experience of working with her?

I knew that this project was going to be special, in part because of how much it meant to Selena. She and her mother, Mandy Teefey, have been a main force in adapting this story from the Jay Asher novel. If it weren’t for the two of them, we wouldn’t have a show. I’ve had a great experience working with Selena. She is a great boss to have.

To say that your character is not likable would be an understatement – how did you approach playing him so accurately and were you at any point reluctant?

Yeah, Bryce isn’t the best kind of person. I was never reluctant to play the part, but I was concerned with portraying him accurately. I had many conversations with psychiatrist Dr. Rebecca Hedrick and sexual assault expert and advocate Alexis Jones. They gave me great advice on people like Bryce and were instrumental in bringing Bryce to life. I wanted Bryce to be recognizable to the viewers. We all thought it would be more powerful if audiences were able to relate Bryce to someone they knew in their own lives vs. Bryce being a sheer monster. Not to say that his acts weren’t monstrous, but he still needed to be human.

 

The show in itself holds a strong responsibility towards young people battling depression and social bullying. Did you ever feel that it might be harmful to put out a project so heavy? There have been reports of a suicide in Austria that followed 13 Reasons Why’s formula with the tapes.

Any time you have a show that unapologetically sheds light on controversial issues, there’s going to be controversy. 13 Reasons Why is often times hard to watch because it can hit so close to home, but that makes it real. It gives people an opportunity to talk about these deep issues that are so often hard to initiate conversations about. We get so many letters and so many people coming up to us in person thanking us for the show and our portrayal of the events in the show. It’s definitely helping people. I wouldn’t say they followed the formula in 13 Reasons Why. For starters, their method was different than Hannah’s. They also didn’t leave any tapes. Any blame on the show is just speculation at this point. The girls had recently watched the show, but it has been admitted that there is no conclusive evidence of any correlation. Cases like this are heartbreaking, and our hearts go out to all people who are going through similar things. We have heard from several experts that a show does not cause someone to take their own lives. Anxiety, depression, stress, etc can. Our show gives people an outlet to talk about these issues that they may be experiencing.

 

What do you think are the positives of putting a character like Bryce Walker out there?

Most people know someone similar to Bryce Walker, and if they don’t personally, there are many cases of privileged athletes who get away with rape. Bryce is real. That’s terrifying, but true. Film and Television have the wonderful roles of spotlighting problems in society. The lack of education on sex and what consent looks like create people like Bryce and create people who think they can take whatever they want. These are kids, who would, often times, never do such things if they were just given the proper guidance early on.

 

13 Reasons Why has been confirmed for a second season  – where is the story going for Bryce?

My lips are sealed [laughs]! I can say that it’s going to be great! There is more to see in all of these characters. Season two takes some interesting turns.

 

Lastly – what’s your FAULT?

I suck at time management! I’m working on it. We only have one life, that we know of, so I should spend less of it procrastinating. There are a lot of things that I hope to accomplish. All of which are going to be hard to achieve if I don’t start cracking down…

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