A gut-wrenching moment in Netflix’s hit series Adolescence that arguably never should have aired has now come to light.
Premiering on March 13, Adolescence has captivated audiences with its gripping storyline, star-studded cast, and bold cinematographic choice to film each episode in a single continuous shot.
The four-part series follows the harrowing journey of 13-year-old Jamie Cooper (Owen Cooper) after he is accused of murdering his female classmate.
In the closing moments of the fourth installment, creator and writer Stephen Graham—who portrays Jamie’s father—breaks down in tears in his son’s bedroom, gently tucking a teddy bear into the bed.
He then whispers to the stuffed toy, “I should have done better.” But this emotional moment wasn’t in the original script.
Crime drama director Philip Barantini revealed to Tudum, “We rehearsed it, and it was great…”
The gut-wrenching scene in Netflix’s hit Adolescence that was never meant to air has now been uncovered.
The four-part series follows 13-year-old Jamie Cooper (Owen Cooper) as his life is upended after being accused of murdering a female classmate.
This moment (above) should never have made it into the show—when Stephen Graham’s character, Eddie, kisses his son Jamie’s teddy bear and tucks it into bed.
“But there was something about him tucking in Jamie’s teddy bear,” Stephen Graham explained. “It’s the only thing Eddie can touch that’s malleable, that Jamie’s cuddled, and that Jamie has been with. And then Stephen made it his own.”
Netflix’s outlet Tudum also revealed that Stephen was originally meant to “get into Jamie’s bed and pull the covers over his body, as if he were an avatar for his imprisoned son.”
But that wasn’t the only improvised moment in the series.
Owen Cooper shared a striking four-word line from the show that was also completely off script.
With the episodes shot in one continuous take, the cast had to adapt quickly when things veered off course. This happened to Owen and co-star Erin Doherty—who plays a child psychologist preparing a profile of Jamie ahead of his trial—during one particular scene.
During an appearance on The One Show last week, 15-year-old Owen opened up, saying, “In episode three, it was the second take of the day—we only do two takes a day. So, it was the second take, and I was tired, so a yawn just came to me.”
Adolescence star Owen Cooper reveals a powerful four-word line from the Netflix series that was entirely improvised.
The new series, which debuted on the streaming service on March 13, has certainly sparked conversation over the past week, thanks to its gripping storyline and the fact that it was filmed in a single continuous take.
Owen Cooper shared, “Then Erin delivered an amazing line, saying, ‘Am I boring you?’ It caught me off guard and made me smile because it wasn’t in the script. I wasn’t expecting that at all, so it threw me off a little, but it was amazing.”
The One Show host Clara Amfo was eager to learn how the young actor managed filming in such an unconventional style and how he avoided mistakes.
Owen responded, “It was the people around me—Stephen [Graham, who plays Jamie’s father], Erin, who’s incredible in episode three. It was really the people around me that I could bounce off of.”
He continued, “The script was long, but it was fine because I had everyone around me. A lot of it in episode three wasn’t strictly followed, so Erin and I just bounced off each other.”
Stephen, who was also a guest on the show, chimed in, “You improvised, didn’t you?”
Owen replied, “Yeah, yeah, yeah.”
Owen, pictured with co-star Stephen Graham, who plays his father, Eddie Miller, in the new Netflix hit.
The cast had to think on their feet whenever something went off script, and this happened to Owen and co-star Erin Doherty during one scene.
“She helped me so much, along with Stephen, Ashley [Walters, who plays DI Luke Bascombe, the lead detective in the murder investigation], and the rest of the cast—they were all amazing.”
Earlier in the interview, Stephen shared the intense preparation the cast went through to ensure everything was perfect for the continuous shot.
He explained, “Each episode is filmed over three weeks. During the first week, our incredible director Philip Barantini led us through an intensive process, and they were absolutely phenomenal.
“In the first week, we focused on the script and analyzing the text. In the second week, we worked with the camera and choreographed the entire thing. By the third week, we shot two scenes a day.
“Ultimately, you might end up with 10 takes, but for the first episode, that was our second take. Your episode, Owen—which is unbelievable—episode three, was take 13. We had a few stops along the way.
“It’s all done in one continuous series, from start to finish.”
Adolescence consists of four episodes and was created and written by Jack Thorne and Stephen Graham.
The cast includes Stephen, Owen, Erin Doherty, Ashley Walters, Faye Marsay, Christine Tremarco, Mark Stanley, Jo Hartley, and Austin Haynes.
All episodes of Adolescence are available to stream on Netflix now.
