3 shows about teens that definitely aren't for teens

It’s important to keep an eye on what your children are watching. There are many TV shows that are focused on groups of teenagers. That doesn’t mean they’re suitable for children of the same age.

Despite having 16-18-year-olds in the story, there are a lot of shows that focus on more adult material. This could be drug use, suicide, or other traumatic topics that carry trigger warnings. If your teenager shares that they want to watch a new show that focuses on teenagers in high school, you’ll want to check it out first.

Here are three shows to start with. While they are about teenagers, they definitely aren’t for teenagers.

Euphoria

When a show is an HBO Original, it can be a sign that it’s not going to be for children of any age. The shows are mostly focused on adult topics, and they don’t shy away from things like sex, violence, and alcohol and drug use. That’s especially the case for the series Euphoria.

The lead character is Zendaya’s Rue, who is in high school and struggling with drug addiction. Then there are teenagers who are selling their bodies and others who are into drugs on a social level. Over the course of the series, we’ve watched as teenagers and even younger kids have sold and died due to drugs. Skip this one with the kids.

13 Reasons Why

Netflix is also a streamer to watch out for when it comes to shows about teenagers. They tend to be on the TV-MA level, and that’s definitely the case with 13 Reasons Why. Despite being set in high school, this show is full of topics that are going to be uncomfortable and somewhat traumatic to watch.

The lead character listens to tapes from his friend who took her own life. This is the story about why she did it, with topics of rape, drugs, and more coming up. As the show continues, there are more traumatic moments and a build-up to one kid considering a school shooting. This is not one for the teenagers.

I Know What You Did Last Summer

When Amazon pushed into the YA space, it ordered a series reboot of I Know What You Did Last Summer. However, the plans changed and it quickly became a TV-MA series, despite being about a group of teenagers.

You know the Jennifer Love Hewitt movie, right? Well, put all that into a TV series but with more sex, alcohol, self-harm, and murder. This is going to lead to a lot of scarring moments for some teenagers. Wait for your teens to get older to introduce them to this horror series.