Stephen Graham Responds To Racist Adolescence Misinformation Shared By Elon Musk

Owen Cooper and Stephen Graham in the Netflix miniseries AdolescenceStephen Graham has shut down some of the racist commentary surrounding his hit show Adolescence.Last month, Stephen’s four-part miniseries – which he co-created, co-wrote and starred in – became a huge success for Netflix, spending just shy of three weeks at the top of the platform’s most-watched chart and dominating the conversation, including in parliament.However, the show did face some more unpleasant criticism from a select few critics.While Stephen maintained that the show’s central killing was not based on any particular real-life cases, some still spread false claims that it was inspired by specific incidents, including the 2024 tragedy that took place in Southport, Merseyside, in which an 18-year-old man, who was Black, killed three children and seriously injured 10 more in a mass stabbing.Because of this misinformation – exacerbated even further when the claim was shared by X owner and Donald Trump advisor Elon Musk and Conservative party leader Kemi Badenoch – some questioned why Adolescence centres around a white teenager, which Stephen addressed during a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter.The outlet claimed that Stephen said in response to “Musk’s butting in”: “They’ve completely got it wrong.”Stephen Graham at the premiere of Adolescence last monthHe continued: “If they were to look at their facts, they would see that the horrific thing that happened in Southport happened after we finished our [show]. It just doesn’t make sense.“So they’re using this to pursue their own agenda. I understand the whole concept of freedom of speech, I get it, and I see what they’re saying. But I think there’s a fine line between freedom of speech and hate.”“Some people have said it’s ‘woke ideology,’ and they’ve taken it to an extreme,” he claimed.“It was never about race … It was just meant to be a representation of a normal family that could live on your street. It could be your sister’s kids or, God forbid, your own kid. All of the stuff I was influenced by was social realism.”Screenwriter Jack Thorne told the podcast The News Agents last month: “They’ve claimed that Stephen and I based [Adolescence] on a story and so they’re saying that we ‘race swapped’ it.“Nothing is further from the truth. I have told a lot of real-life stories in my time. I know the harm that can come when you take elements of a real-life story, and you 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.”Jack added: “It’s absurd to say that [these crimes are] only committed by Black boys. It’s absurd, it’s not true.”MORE ADOLESCENCE:Adolescence Star Owen Cooper Reveals The Truth About This Improvised Moment In Episode 3Adolescence Writer Admits There's 1 Thing He Wishes He Could Change About The ShowAdolescence's Director Finally Answers This 1 Big Question About Episode 4

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