Netflix CONFIRMS a second season of Heartbreak High after the Gen-Z reboot of the classic Australian teen drama became a global hit
Heartbreak High will have a second season on Netflix.
The streaming platform officially renewed the Australian teen drama on Wednesday, Hollywood trade publication Deadline reports.
Debuting on September 14, the reboot of the popular 1990s TV series of the same name has reached 42.2 million viewing hours in just three weeks.
Heartbreak High will have a second season on Netflix
While its popularity in Australia was expected, Netflix bosses were apparently surprised when it reached the top ten in more than 40 countries around the world.
Heartbreak High is Netflix’s first major locally produced drama series since the Covid pandemic began.
The original Heartbreak High (1994-1999) was set in the fictional Hartley High, with storylines addressing racism, human rights, and other real-life issues.
Launching on Netflix on September 14, the show, inspired by the iconic 1990s series of the same name, reached 42.2 million hours watched in just three weeks.
The series is most popular in Australia, Britain, America and parts of Africa. Heartbreak High is Netflix’s first major locally produced drama series since the pandemic
It made household names from its stars, including Callan Mulvey, who played bad boy Bogdan Drazic, and Home and Away veteran Ada Nicodemou.
Netflix’s eight-episode reboot gives the series a 21st century makeover.
Its rapid success silenced those who criticized the series prematurely because its diverse cast made it seem “too wide awake”.
Its rapid success silenced those who criticized the series prematurely because its diverse cast made it seem “too wide awake”.
Although the cast features racially mixed, non-binary, and even autistic characters, the strong storylines and sharp writing mean it’s far from a mere showcase of diversity.
Produced by Netflix and Freemantle, the cast stars actor James Majoos as Darren, who uses his pronouns and is described as “sarcastic” and “hot-headed”.
Bryn Chapman-Parish meanwhile plays Spider, who is described as “a pinch of incel” and a “classy clown”.
Although the cast features racially mixed, non-binary, and even autistic characters, the strong storylines and sharp writing mean it’s far from a mere showcase of diversity.
Gemma Chua-Tran plays Sasha, a “school lesbian” who uses both the pronouns she/her and them/them.
Josh Heuston is Dusty, a bisexual character who “slept with half the girls – and even a few boys – at school”.
Show creator Hannah Carroll Chapman said the reboot had a “life of its own”.
Original Heartbreak High star Salvatore Coco has given the show his endorsement.
‘I thought it was fantastic. It was feared that he was too “woke”. But no, it touched on the topics and wasn’t in your face,’ he said on the Blackbox TV podcast.
The original Heartbreak High was a popular teen drama in the 90s and made many young actors stars, including Ada Nicodemou and Salvatore Coco (pictured)
Advertising