20 Behind-The-Scenes Facts Of Netflix's You

Unless you've been living under a rock, you've likely heard about "You" — Netflix's psychological thriller series starring Penn Badgley as a charming, manipulative murderer. 

Unlike the wealth of true crime documentaries Netflix has been rolling out recently, "You" is fictional. However, the fear you'll experience after binge-watching this show feels real enough to make you want to delete all of your social media accounts and never talk to another stranger again — especially in a bookstore. With three seasons released so far and a fourth in the works, fans are dying (no pun intended) to find out what's next for the Actual Worst Boyfriend Ever, Joe Goldberg. However, there's a lot more to the Netflix hit series to be discovered behind-the-scenes.

If you watched "You" on Netflix and found yourself thinking the whole thing was playing out like some sort of made-for-TV Lifetime drama, then give yourself a pat on the back because your instincts are spot-on. Before the show was catapulted to fame on the streaming service in December 2018, its first season had a rather underwhelming run on the television network known for its over-the-top (and totally addicting) original thrillers. But despite "You" having all the ingredients usually required to make a Lifetime hit, the show's ratings fell flat — and the network announced in December 2018 that "You" was no longer a part of its family. 

However, one network's trash is apparently a certain streaming service's treasure. Shortly after Lifetime announced the end of "You" on its network, Netflix swooped in to save it — premiering the drama on its platform the day after Christmas. Producer Greg Berlanti told The New York Times, "['You'] went from being one of the least-watched shows I've ever worked on and been most proud of ... to being the most-watched show I've ever worked on in 20-something years of being in the business."

It may not surprise you to learn that You is based on a best-selling novel of the same name. There's certainly no shortage of movies and TV shows based on books, and Caroline Kepnes' novel "You" contained a story perfectly poised to be adapted for the screen. And while both the book and the show are delightfully thrilling and equally addicting, there are some key differences in the stories being told. 

As Bustle points out, Beck has a much stronger voice in the book. While the show depicts Beck as oblivious to Joe's stalking, the book reveals that Beck was actually aware of it. For example, in the book, Beck knew Joe followed her to that poetry reading — and she even found it flattering. 

Other differences include the addition of Paco and Annika's characters in the show, the method Joe uses to kill Peach, and the question of whether or not Candace (Joe's ex-girlfriend) is alive or not. In the book, there's no question Candace is dead — but the show's first season ended with her showing up at Joe's bookstore. Talk about a cliffhanger!

There's no question that "You" is one of the hottest shows in Netflix. The psychological thriller is so popular, in fact, that it's caught the attention of the star of another hit Netflix show. Millie Bobby Brown, the young actress who portrays Eleven on Netflix's "Stranger Things," took to Instagram in January 2019 to join in on the virtual water cooler conversation surrounding the show. 

According to Entertainment Tonight, Brown posted a video to her Instagram story, saying, "So I just started that new show 'You.' [Joe's] not creepy. He's in love with [Beck], and it's okay." The star continued, "So I'm obsessed with it, I'm binge-watching it, absolute banger, Netflix."

Fans were quick to respond to Brown by pointing out that Joe's extremely problematic and dangerous behavior shouldn't be mistaken for love or affection. Thankfully, it seems that the star developed a better understanding once finishing the show. Brown later took to Instagram to clarify her comments, saying, "I guess I gathered an analysis too quickly. I watched episode 10, [and he's] most definitely is a stalker. My bad if I upset anyone."

Despite all the talk surrounding Joe, Penn Badgley's bookish stalker isn't the only engrossing character "You" has to offer. Shay Mitchell joined the first season's cast to portray Beck's best friend, Peach, a complicated character who, like Joe, has ulterior motives when it comes to Beck — though Peach doesn't resort to violence to get her way. 

When we first meet Peach, we're led to believe that she's nothing more than a concerned best friend. However, as the show progresses, it's revealed that Peach is actually in love with Beck — and doing everything in her power to cut Joe out of the picture. Playing Peach marked Mitchell's second LGBTQ identifying role (her first was on "Pretty Little Liars"), but the actress told Refinery 29 that her characters' sexual orientations are only part of who they are, and don't play a part in her choosing certain roles. Mitchell said, "I didn't choose the role because it was another character that was kissing a girl. With this [project], it was really just the character that I was enjoying getting to play, regardless of who she was making out with. That was not even a thought."

As horrifying as Joe Goldberg's behavior is, some fans of You still continue to defend his antics and label Beck as undeserving of his affection — but why? Well, as Joe himself points out in the show, obsessive, stalker-like behavior has been portrayed onscreen and passed off as love for as long as romantic comedies have been around. Julia Lippman, a University of Michigan professor, told The Huffington Post, "Men are socialized to be persistent and women are socialized to be flattered by it. [Women are] taught that we should want this from men. That it means we're desirable. And who doesn't want to be desirable?"

Even Sera Gamble, "You's" showrunner, seems to have a difficult time discerning romance from Joe's toxicity. In an interview with Collider, Gamble revealed that she found herself sometimes rooting for Joe and Beck to end up together (even though she was well-aware of the relationship's grisly ending), saying, "I can't help it because I love a romance." Oof.

According to IMDb, Penn Badgley isn't just the star of "You." He's also been an executive producer since Season 3. And, as of Season 4, he's also a director. "We hired a new director this season but he seems to know the show really, really well," wrote showrunner Sera Gamble on Instagram.

It turns out, Badgley's directorial debut came in the form of the ninth episode of Season 4. As Badgley explained on the podcast "Podcrushed," he was "so glad" to have had the experience. "I am very visual," he said. "I have clear specific ideas about how I want something to look, but what really fed me was getting to talk to the actors, giving them notes." Apparently, the episode he directed was "really emotionally intense," so it wasn't an easy task. But, he said, "I felt like I got to put a little bit of my own imprint on it visually" (via ET Canada).

You would think that as the star of the show, Penn Badgley would have quite a few lines to memorize, right? Well, as it turns out, not quite. As the actor explained in a 2019 interview, he doesn't actually have to say that much on camera, which means he doesn't have that much to memorize. "Most of my lines are in my head," he said. This meant that Badgley got to simply read his lines into a microphone after filming. "Most days when I was on set, actually, I wouldn't have to memorize any lines, I would just have to do them later," he said. "And that was quite interesting." 

Luckily, Badgley explained, he actually got his start in the industry doing radio voiceovers and video games when he was just 10 years old, so he felt pretty comfortable doing all of Joe's narration. 

Dylan Arnold wasn't the only "You" actor who had a long relationship with the show before actually joining the cast. As it turns out, Victoria Pedretti, who played Love Quinn in Seasons 2 and 3, was actually up for another part first: Beck, Joe's love interest in Season 1. "'You' was my first call-back ever," Pedretti told Elle. "I auditioned for the first season, for Beck, and had a call-back with the producer." Even though Pedretti didn't get the job, it all worked out for the best. "I'm glad I didn't, because it meant that I was able to do 'The Haunting of Hill House,' and it meant that I was able to come back to play Love," she said.

In another interview with Byrdie, her Love audition came when she was still finishing her university degree. "I was reached out to by Greg Berlanti and Sera Gamble about 'You' because of the work they saw me do on 'Hill House,'" she said. "I haven't even talked to them about whether or not they remember me auditioning for Beck, to be honest." Who knows if Pedretti's first audition for Beck helped her land the part of Beck, but either way, it seems like she eventually landed the part she was destined for.

It's pretty hard to imagine anyone but Penn Badgley playing the role of Joe — after all, he has the whole creepy yet inexplicably attractive thing down to a tee. But, as it turns out, there was a time when we could have had someone else in the lead role. Of course, the production team always thought that Badgley was a good fit. "He brings with him the vibe of what Joe says he is on paper," Sera Gamble, the show's creator and showrunner, told Vulture. However, she went on to explain that Badgley was hesitant about accepting the role at first. "He's capable of plumbing those depths and going there, but he was initially ... I don't think repulsed would be too strong a word," she said.

So, what changed his mind? "It was really ultimately my conversations with [the team] that made me overcome my, my pesky moral conflict over playing such a guy." We're just grateful he changed his mind!

In Season 2, Ellie, played by Jenna Ortega, quickly became a fan-favorite. She was also one of the only characters who had a real bond with Joe that wasn't — well — super creepy. If you're a fan of Ellie, you might be sad to learn that the character doesn't actually exist in the original Caroline Kepnes books at all. In the show, Ellie is the younger sister of Delilah, but in the books, Delilah only has an older sister and we never even meet her (via Insider). As ScreenRant noted, adding a character like Ellie into the show gave us a chance to see a more human side to Joe.

Even though Ellie didn't feature in the books, we may still see more of her on the show. "Ellie is still in Joe's life," explained showrunner Sera Gamble to The Hollywood Reporter. "He's sending her money. She hates him, but he is sending her money. So that door remains open for us." 

Even though Joe moved away from LA and she was only mentioned in Season 3, there may still be hope that Ellie could make a return. As Ortega also told PopSugar, "I had such an incredible time there that if they would like to have me back, I'm more than happy to take a few digs at Joe again." Fingers crossed we haven't seen the last of Ellie!