Common Sense Media Review
By Joyce Slaton
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Violence, drugs, nudity in spooky troubled-teen drama.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 15+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
Wayward
What's the Story?
For generations, Tall Pines Academy in beautiful and remote Tall Pines, Vermont, has been a place where WAYWARD teens are welcomed with open arms. When these teens have become too troublesome for their parents to handle, Tall Pines and its beatific leader, Evelyn (Toni Collette), are ready to help these teens change. But when Officer Alex Dempsey (Mae Martin) and his pregnant wife, Laura (Sarah Gadon), move to Tall Pines hoping to get a fresh start in the town where Laura used to live, Alex soon turns up disturbing information connected to the academy. Meanwhile, Abbie (Sydney Topliffe) and Leila (Alyvia Alyn Lind) start attending the academy, and begin making alarming discoveries of their own.
Is It Any Good?
The troubled-teen industry is eerie enough, but this twisty, effectively spooky limited series uses its "therapeutic boarding school" as a jumping-off point for even darker doings. Every Wayward character has a reason to be in Tall Pines: Alex is fleeing a violent incident at his last precinct and hopes to put down roots with his pregnant wife, Laura, who says it's comforting to return to the small town where she herself attended Tall Pines Academy under Evelyn's tutelage. Evelyn would tell anyone who asked that all she wants is to help the teens in her care find peace and happiness. And Abbie and Leila, well, their parents have put their trust in Tall Pines Academy, which they hope can help their daughters settle down and abide by school and home rules.
And so the narrative proceeds, with all the horrors viewers have come to expect from troubled-teen tales: midnight kidnappings with teens dragged screaming from their homes, students imprisoned in locked rooms, singalongs, brutal punishments, brainwashing techniques. But there's more at play here than just an evil school, and Wayward spools out its twists at a steadily brisker pace (it starts as something of a slow burn) until its all-out bonkers ending. Just try to keep yourself from hitting Play on each new episode until it's done.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the troubled-teen industry that's at the center of this narrative. What have you heard about "reform" or "therapy" schools and their history of abuse? How much does Wayward get right about these types of institutions?
Mae Martin, who is the creator of this show and stars as Alex Dempsey, identifies as a nonbinary individual, but in Wayward, they play a trans man. How does Alex's identity as a trans man inform the storyline of Wayward? How realistic is Alex as a character?
Cults are a topic that figures frequently in horror and true crime. What other TV shows or movies can you name that have a storyline involving cults? What do you think of the depictions?
TV Details
- Premiere date : September 25, 2025
- Cast : Toni Collette , Mae Martin , Patrick J. Adams
- Network : Netflix
- Genre : Drama
- Topics : Dystopia , Friendship , School
- TV rating :
- Last updated : October 5, 2025
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