11 surprising facts about Netflix's thriller series You
The hit Netflix series has taken over our lives in recent years
Netflix series You is one of the most popular (and creepy) series in living memory. From actor Penn Badgley's portrayal of Joe Goldberg, to the shocking twists and turns that keep us glued to the very edge of our seats, there's so many reasons why we've binged all four seasons in no time AT ALL!
Having worked our way through the entirety of series four pretty much the day it dropped on the streaming platform, we're now just weeks away from seeing Joe's almighty return to New York City in season five. In preparation for the final season, we thought it apt to take a look at some behind the scenes trivia about the hit show - and some of these facts will surprise you! From the show's past, to its cast, set and filming locations, here's some incredible facts about Netflix's You...
Check out 11 interesting facts about Netflix's You:
Penn Badgley very nearly turned down playing Joe
He was "conflicted" that the show would be problematic as the character was such an "awful person". Penn told Entertainment Weekly: "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?
"And then what was key in me wanting to jump on board were my conversations with Greg Berlanti and Sera Gamble, the creators, and understanding Joe's humanity.
"I knew that I would be conflicted about the role from day one till the last day, and that is why they thought I would be good for it, is that I'm not psyched to play somebody of this nature."
You didn't actually premiere on Netflix
Yep, creators Greg Berlanti and Sera Gamble originally premiered the show on Lifetime in September 2018, however was dropped after the first season. Bet they're kicking themselves now - as the show was later picked up by Netflix, continuing as a Netflix Original title... And the rest is history!
A clue that the show wasn't always a Netflix original is the first episode's title - 'Pilot'.
You is based on books
The show is based on books by Caroline Kepnes - You (2014), Hidden Bodies (2016), You Love Me (2021) and the most recent For You and Only You (2023). Although we have a fifth and final season of the show, it doesn't look like there's any plans at the moment for another book.
Stephen King even praised the books, saying: "Totally original. Never read anything quite like it…Hypnotic and scary."
Penn wasn't the only one who nearly turned down a part in the show
Tati Gabrielle, who plays libarian Marienne Bellamy in series three initially turned the role down as her agent told her it was a 'mystery show'.
She told Marie Claire: "In September or October of last year I was in Spain shooting another project. I had fully intended, once I finished that project, to take a month off. But my agent said, 'They want you for this Greg Berlanti project.' I asked, 'What is it?' They couldn't tell me, so I said no."
She added: "Then I knew what it was. I said yes because I was a super big fan of the show."
They use a 'blood machine' for the gory scenes
All the gory blood is made of sugar that gets squirted out of a 'blood machine' in the particularly graphic scenes. A lot of effort goes into the gory scenes in the show, and with a whole lot of help from some prosthetics, it's fair to say the show has become renowned for it's rather audacious scenes.
Penn didn’t have many lines to learn for the show
Especially compared to the rest of the cast, Penn didn't have to memorise many lines at all - and that's because most of his dialogue was the infamous voiceover! Speaking to Jimmy Kimmel, Penn admitted that "80% of my lines, if not more are actually voiceovers". The actor then revealed that most days he would go to the set and hardly have any lines, and that he was just "looking".
It's fair to say that Penn was well practiced, as his first ever acting roles were for a radio station and Nintendo 64 video games when he was 10-years-old.
Show stars took safety courses... Safety first!
Elizabeth Lail, who played Beck in the first series, and Penn had to to attend an eight-hour safety course before they were allowed to film on the NYC subway tracks.
Penn feared he's make Joe too likeable
When filming every series, Penn was worried that he was making the character of Joe too likeable, especially as fans seemed to warm to him way too much... Considering he's a serial killer.
However, show creator Sara Gamble admitted that she thinks this is because audiences are wired to root for the love story.
She said: "If you just present a 'cute meet' in a bookstore, you're gonna want them to be together. If you see them together in the first scene, you're gonna want them to be together, even if you see what Joe is doing."
Two of the show's stars reportedly dated in real life
Despite all the gore and creepy obsessions, real-life love actually has come from You... Well, reportedly. Along with their complicated relationship on the show, it was reported that Victoria Pedretti was dating her co-star Dylan Arnold, who appears in season three as the flirty next door neighbour and college student Theo Engler.
Despite reports of the pair dating for a few months back in 2021, it appears they are no longer an 'item'.
Mooney's book store is a real shop
The facade of Mooney's bookstore, where Joe works in season one, is in fact a real life book shop! The signage above the door was kept fairly similar for the show, with the only real difference being the name.
The real shop is called Logos Bookstore, and sells Christian and religious books. Will we see Joe visit his old stomping ground in season five as he returns to NYC?
Season five was filmed in the same studios as Gossip Girl
That's right - season five returning to New York is an exciting move for more reasons than one. Firstly, it was of course where the whole story began, back at Mooney's bookstore in season one. On top of that, the city is also where Penn resides with his family.
But alas, to top it all off, the thriller returning to New York City is particularly poignant as not only is it where Gossip Girl was filmed - but the crew even filmed in the same studios. Penn told Netflix's Tudum: "Returning to the Mooney set on these stages was particularly poignant because this is where we shot Gossip Girl. And I hadn't really been back here except for one day of camera testing a long time ago."
Heading back to film on Stage B at Silvercup Studios, in Queens, Penn could reconnect with his iconic former role as Dan Humphrey in the hit show Gossip Girl, which was filmed between 2007 and 2012. Adding that returning to the stage was "definitely very interesting" on "several levels", he said: "It was creating new memories but with something that is already also quite iconic".
Read more:
Netflix's You star Shalita Grant discusses 'making history' on the hit show
Netflix's You: Get to know the cast from seasons one to five
Dramatic full trailer released for final series of You
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