Heartstopper: Could it go further?
It has been a year since Heartstopper took over our lives, and one question is, "could it go further?" Heartstopper is a heartfelt TV show on the streaming platform Netflix originating from Alice Ose
It has been a year since Heartstopper took over our lives, and one question is, "could it go further?"
Heartstopper is a heartfelt TV show on the streaming platform Netflix originating from Alice Oseman's Graphic Novel series "Heartstopper". In the Book, we meet the two main characters, Nick Nelson (Kit Connor) and Charlie Spring (Joe Locke), two unlikely friends.
Charlie is a 15-year-old gay boy who was outed and severely bullied in year 8, and Nick Nelson is a 16-year-old star school rugby player. Throughout the Book, we see Charlie's attraction toward Nick grow and Nick's realisation of his bisexual identity despite his "popularity" status and being surrounded by causal homophobia.
As the show progresses, we meet the two boys' friend groups. Charlie's friend group consists of Tao Xu (William Gao), Elle Argent (Yasmin Finney) and Issac Henderson (Tobie Donovan). However, Nick's friend group is the rugby boys that bullied Charlie when he was younger. He quickly realises he doesn't fit in with them and starts a budding friendship with the lesbian couple at Higgs, Tara Jones (Corinna Brown) and Darcy Olsson (Kizzy Edgell).
This show has provided a positive outlook on LGBTQ+ representation and has given fans a community and a family. It has encouraged many fans to come out themselves. One of these Fans was Esme, a student passionate about films. She shared with Pink News that the idea came to fruition when she was joking with her friend about coming out Heartstopper and decided that she wanted to do it after watching Nick Nelson's coming out. Her parents were supportive, like Nick Nelson's mum and assured her she was still her. She shared this news on Twitter, and it caught the attention of Kit Connor.
"This. This is why we did it," the actor wrote.
This. This is why we did it. https://t.co/J81Tj5WyZK
— Kit Connor (@kit_connor) April 2022
Unfortunately, since the tweet was published, Kit Connor has deleted his Twitter Account after being forced to come out as Bisexual.
This is why I believe it could go further and could include LGBTQ+ Disabled characters. There has been a lack of positive representation as often they are played by able-bodied people or have ableist writing. Heartstopper would be the show that could implement this diverse LGBTQ+ representation, and Heartstopper has done that.
We finally got a disabled character featured on Heartstopper, which Netflix revealed on November 4 2022, that there would be new additions to the cast in Season Two. Ash Self was among these new additions, and they will play Felix. Ash is a disabled actor who intends to prove that disabled people can play all roles when given the right opportunities.
Ash shares on Twitter that he prefers to be called disabled, that Ash’s mobility aids are also Felix’s, and that he did not switch them or change them for the role - you can read more here:
https://twitter.com/Riversof_shadow/status/1682915869360529411
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Bradley Riches is another disabled actor who has joined the Heartstopper casting as James McEwan, a minor character who has a crush on Charlie Spring. He shared with Metro that James’ character will be explored more within Heartstopper S2 and that he finds similarities between James and Himself. Riches is autistic, and while it is unknown whether James on Heartstopper will also be autistic, the actor has told Metro that he is passionate about autistic representation on TV.
“I never had this when I was younger, I never saw an actor who was openly autistic, but we’re getting towards the right place with more autistic actors playing autistic roles, which should always be the case, otherwise it’s not truthful representation.”
Bradley shared in an Interview with ReVamp that he is writing a play about autism, stating: “It’s a one person play, and it’s basically about me – I’m very self-obsessed. It wouldn’t feel authentic otherwise.”
On July 17, 2023, we got to see a first look at all the characters, including new characters James and Felix, and it is so exciting to see a wheelchair character featured on Heartstopper. Are you?
https://twitter.com/NetflixUK/status/1680880018744922118
We saw all these incredible actors and actresses on our screens again on August 3. Season 2 has deviated away from the Books slightly, and Netflix reveals all in their behind-the-scenes Heartstopper.
The season will focus on Nick and Charlie navigating their new relationship, Tara and Darcy facing unforeseen challenges, and Tao and Elle working out if they can ever be more than just friends. With exams on the horizon, a school trip to Paris and a prom to plan, the gang has a lot to juggle as they journey through the following stages of life: love and friendship.
This includes knowledge from when the strikes were happening and does not include that Season 3 of Heartstopper is currently being filmed.