'Did you say India?' Stephen Graham on the unprecedented success of 'Adolescence'

Stephen Graham, who gained fame for acting as rough boys in series such as Boardwalk Empire and The Irishman, did not think his new endeavor, Adolescence, would gain this much traction. The four-part Netflix show has garnered a 99% Rotten Tomatoes and critics simply cannot get enough of this masterpiece. The series depicts a 13-year-old boy who is accused of murder, and how the life of the boy, as well as the lives of people around him, gets ruined after that. Graham co-created the show and plays the role of the boy's father. Now, in an interview with Rolling Stone, Graham spoke about the show's worldwide success and its production.

"Did you say India?": Stephen Graham responds to the show's fame

When Adolescence hit Netflix on March 14th, Graham wondered if it might be noticed at home in the UK. What he didn't anticipate was just how far it would go. And India wasn't even on his bingo list. Within days, it landed on Netflix's global top-viewed list. But it was Indian viewers' reaction that utterly astonished him. I received a message from a friend of mine, informing me about how large Adolescence is in India," he explains. "And my initial reaction was, 'Hold on… did you say India?!

The series was initially thought to be loosely based on a real-life

' Apparently, it's really hitting a chord there. For Stephen Graham, it was surreal. He described how the show began to feel very local, very British. "It was very colloquial," he said, meaning that it was about a particular place and culture. "But it's like we threw a stone into this pond, and the ripple effect it's created has been unbelievable." Why Stephen Graham wanted to make Adolescence. The series was initially thought to be loosely based on a real-life story, given that such cases had hit the headlines in the recent past. The concept, though, struck Stephen Graham on his way home after an award ceremony. He had his very close friend, Philip Barantini, along, and they were discussing projects they wanted to work on next. At that instant, Graham recounts, the entire story occurred to him. "I swear on my late mother's life," he said.

Graham had read news reports about teenage boys committing violent crimes

"I had the whole show in my head. Like, the whole thing." He explained that the idea was inspired by true events that had been nagging him for some time. Graham had read news reports about teenage boys committing violent crimes. That's precisely what led him to question what was happening in their minds and in their lives. "These aren't men who are committing these crimes.

Graham chose to make Adolescence raw and realistic

They're boys," he explained. That kept going through his mind. How Adolescence came together Philip Barantini and Stephen Graham chose to make Adolescence raw and realistic. And we all now know, of course, that the single-take method was used in most scenes. What they were trying to do was get the audience feeling that they were present with the characters. Owen Cooper, a 14-year-old with zero experience as an actor, portrayed the character of the young boy.

Merely the beginning of the discussion

The psychologist is played by Erin Doherty. Graham plays the father of the boy, and his character changes throughout the series. "I wanted to create one of those social dramas for the moment. Because we have an actual crisis happening with young men these days, and we need to begin discussing it immediately. It impacts all of us. I just wanted to begin a discussion about this, an honest discussion," Graham said. Graham's character in the show at first attempts to keep everything intact, but by the last episode, he's racked with guilt and rage. "I didn't know if folks would be prepared to discuss it. But I believe they are. And hopefully, this is merely the beginning of the discussion," he continued.