Anyone who has watched the Netflix series “13 Reasons Why” knows that the show can be pretty harrowing to view. The story is based on the critically-claimed 2007 YA book of the same name by author Jay Asher and graphically depicts bullying, sexual abuse, and teenage suicide. While it is harrowing and emotional for viewers to watch, it can only be imagined what the young actors went through while filming the show on a daily basis.
Without giving away too many spoilers for those who have not yet watched the show, the Netflix series runs through 13 episodes, each action-packed and intense.
In each episode, character Clay Jensen, listens to another character, Hannah Baker, speaking on a series of 13 tapes. Each of these tapes describes her reasoning for committing suicide to people involved the story and tells them what their role was in her decision to end it all.
Bring on the therapy pups
This obviously took a toll on the young actors, so producers came up with the perfect solution - they brought in a series of Therapy Dogs to help them get through. While therapy dogs are better known for comforting people who are ill or suffering through trauma, they were also helpful in calming the young stars during their harrowing scenes. Seventeen mentioned in their report that the Alliance of Therapy Dogs describes the animals as being on a “mission of sharing smiles and joy.” Any dog lover can totally agree with that statement and so can the actors in “13 Reasons Why.”
How Netflix's 13 Reasons Why Is the Most Important YA Adaptation Yet https://t.co/9myDiJGRgE via @popsugaruk
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PopSugar spoke to Dylan Minnette, who plays Clay Jensen in the show and he said the dogs really tried to help them, adding that the puppies did indeed help and that there was a "puppy per hour." Minnette went on to mention his co-star, Katherine Langford who plays Hannah Baker, saying she had the most emotional role, and while they all had emotional parts in the show, it was, after all, all about her character.
Katherine Langford on filming ’13 Reasons Why’
Langford told Pop Sugar the dogs’ help was really important. As the suicide victim in the series, some of her scenes were the most intense and emotionally challenging to film. Katherine went on to describe how they went through each new script at a table read. However, she said once they reached episode nine, it was silent at the table.
It had finally sunk in that what they were doing in the show was really important.
The 13 episodes of "13 Reasons Why" cover many intense issues that teens go through each day, but she said the last five episodes were the hardest and most tragic to film. She mentioned a scene in episode 12 that, as a human being, was physically hard to do.
She added that it was only after the filming was complete that she realized just what “really heavy stuff” the actors handled. She said she is proud of how they did handle it and that they didn’t shy away from the various issues depicted in the show.
The "13 Reasons Why" Actors Had Therapy Dogs to Help with Emotional Scenes - https://t.co/mxnqxZIWq7 https://t.co/bSCamHauzq
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Selena Gomez supported the cast of ’13 Reasons Why’
Besides the therapy dogs, Katherine also mentioned how much support the cast received on the set of “13 Reasons Why,” which she said was mainly due to executive producer Selena Gomez. She went on to stress how generous Gomez is and how much she genuinely cares. Minnette also said that as their boss, Selena made them all feel “very loved and welcome.”
