Heartbreak High (2022 TV series)

For the original 1994 TV series, see Heartbreak High.

Heartbreak High
Promotional poster
Genre	Comedy drama Teen drama
Created by	Hannah Carroll Chapman
Starring	Ayesha Madon Thomas Weatherall Bryn Chapman Parish Asher Yasbincek James Majoos Chloé Hayden Will McDonald Gemma Chua-Tran Sherry-Lee Watson Josh Heuston Brodie Townsend Chika Ikogwe Scott Major Rachel House Sam Rechner
Country of origin	Australia
Original language	English
No. of seasons	2
No. of episodes	16
Production
Producers	Carly Heaton Sarah Freeman Jeroen Koopman Tarik Traidia Brian Abel Michael Jenkins Megan Palinkas
Production locations	Sydney, New South Wales
Cinematography	Simon Ozolins Drew English
Running time	45–52 minutes
Production company	Fremantle Australia & NewBe
Original release
Network	Netflix
Release	14 September 2022 (2022-09-14) – present
Related
Heartbreak High (original 1994 TV series)

Heartbreak High is an Australian comedy drama television series created for Netflix, by Hannah Carroll Chapman. It is a soft reboot of the 1994 series first screened on Network Ten. The series follows the students and teachers of Hartley High as they navigate racial tensions in Australia, high school romances, and all sorts of teen angst. It features an ensemble cast including Ayesha Madon, Thomas Weatherall, Bryn Chapman Parish, Asher Yasbincek, James Majoos, Chloé Hayden, Will McDonald, Gemma Chua-Tran, Sherry-Lee Watson, Josh Heuston, Brodie Townsend, Chika Ikogwe, Scott Major and Rachel House. Sam Rechner, Kartanya Maynard and Angus Sampson joined the series in its second season.

Heartbreak High premiered on Netflix on 14 September 2022. The following month, it was renewed for a second season, which premiered on 11 April 2024. In May 2024, the series was renewed for a third and final season. The first season received universal praise from critics, while the second season divided critics and audiences. It has received numerous accolades, including an International Emmy Award and received 15 AACTA Awards nominations, including Best Drama Series, winning six.

Premise

After a map detailing the sexual exploits of Hartley High's students is discovered graffitied on the wall of the school, all of the students whose names were on it are forced to attend a new sexual education course called the Sexual Literacy Tutorial (SLT, pronounced "sluts" by the students). The map's creator, Amerie Wadia (Ayesha Madon), becomes a social outcast after taking the fall for its co-author, Harper McLean (Asher Yasbincek), who has stopped talking to her following a tragedy at a music festival they attended.

Cast

Main

• Ayesha Madon as Amerie Wadia, a brash, working-class Indian-Australian girl who becomes a pariah at Hartley High.
• Thomas Weatherall as Malakai Mitchell, a bisexual Bundjalung basketball jock new to Hartley.
• Bryn Chapman Parish as Spencer "Spider" White, the demisexual class clown.
• Asher Yasbincek as Harper McLean, Amerie's best friend who has a falling out with her in the first episode.
• James Majoos as Darren Rivers, a queer and non-binary student who befriends Amerie.
• Chloé Hayden as Quinn "Quinni" Gallagher-Jones, Darren's lesbian best friend who is autistic.
• Will McDonald as Douglas "Ca$h" Piggott, an asexual eshay, drug dealer and food delivery driver.
• Gemma Chua-Tran as Sasha So, a Chinese-Australian lesbian.
• Sherry-Lee Watson as Missy Beckett, a bisexual Indigenous student who used to be involved with Sasha.
• Joshua Heuston as Dustin "Dusty" Reid, a bisexual musician involved with Harper. (Series 1; guest series 2)
• Brodie Townsend as Anthony "Ant" Vaughn, an affable, big-hearted student.
• Chika Ikogwe as Josephine "Jojo" Obah, English and SLT's teacher at Hartley High.
• Scott Major as Peter Rivers, Darren's father, who reprises his role from the 1994 series. (Series 1)
• Rachel House as Principal Stacy "Woodsy" Woods, the performatively woke school principal at Hartley High.
• Sam Rechner as Rowan Callaghan, a country boy from Dubbo new to Hartley High. (Series 2)
• Kartanya Maynard as Zoe Clarke, an Indigenous student. (Series 2)
• Angus Sampson as Timothy Voss, a "pro-male", misogynistic sports teacher. (Series 2)

Recurring and notable guest stars

• Isabella Gutierrez as Chaka Cardenes, who reprises her role from the 1994 series.
• Ben Oxenbould as Justin McLean, Harper's dad. (Series 1)
• Justin Smith as Jim the Maintenance Man. (Series 1)
• Sandy Sharma as Huma Wadia, Amerie's mother.
• Tom Wilson as Chook, the leader of the eshays and one of Ca$h's friends.
• Kye McMaster as Tilla, one of Ca$h's friends.
• Ari McCarthy as Jayden, one of Ca$h's friends.
• Maggie Dence as Nan, Ca$h's grandmother.
• Robyn Malcolm as Cait White, Spider's mother. (Series 2)
• Stephen Hunter as Coach Arkell. (Series 1)
• Jeremy Lindsay Taylor as Kurt Peterson, who reprises his role from the 1994 series. (Series 1)
• Natalie Tran as Rhea Brown, a local author. (Series 1)
• Jude Hyland as Jett Callaghan, Rowan's younger brother. (Series 2)
• Lara Cox as Anita Scheppers, who reprises her role from the 1994 series. (Series 2)

Episodes

Series	Episodes		Originally released
1	8		14 September 2022 (2022-09-14)
2	8		11 April 2024 (2024-04-11)

Season 1 (2022)

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original release date
1	1	"Map B**ch"	Gracie Otto	Hannah Carroll Chapman	14 September 2022 (2022-09-14)
Amerie Wadia becomes a social pariah at Hartley High after the "incest map", a detailed diagram of which students have been sexually involved, is discovered and she is revealed as the culprit. Harper McLean, Amerie's longtime best friend and co-creator of the map, starts ignoring her and punches her when she tries to talk to her, but doesn't explain why. The last time Amerie and Harper were together was at a music festival the week before (which is shown repeatedly throughout the season in flashbacks). The students who appear on the map are placed in a mandatory sex education class headed by Principal Stacy "Woodsy" Woods and English teacher Josephine "Jojo" Obah as a result. Darren Rivers sleeps on the street after clashing with their stepfather over their non-binary identity and eventually seeks refuge at their father Peter's house. Quinn "Quinni" Gallagher-Jones and Darren befriend Amerie and take her to a party, where she kisses her crush, Dustin "Dusty" Reid.
2	2	"Renaissance Titties"	Gracie Otto	Matthew Whittet & Hannah Carroll Chapman	14 September 2022 (2022-09-14)
Dusty's band Renaissance Titties is having a show at his place, and Amerie is keen to attend. Unfortunately, Spencer "Spider" White, a fellow student who deeply dislikes Amerie, is in charge of ticket sales and he refuses to sell one to her. Amerie gets help sneaking into the party from Malakai Mitchell, but in the process accidentally falls into a swimming pool. At the show, Amerie finds out that Dusty and Harper are seeing each other and she is heartbroken. Quinni and Sasha go on a date, and Quinni becomes overwhelmed, leading Sasha to believe she doesn't like her. Quinni explains she's autistic, then the two have their first kiss. Chook, Douglas "Ca$h" Piggott, Tilla and Jayden steal Dusty's dad's car. Chook is the ringleader of the group.
3	3	"Eetsway"	Neil Sharma	Marieke Hardy	14 September 2022 (2022-09-14)
Chook and his crew, including Ca$h, use Dusty's dad's car to steal goods from a retail store. The police are pursuing them, and the crew have to escape on foot. Chook tells Ca$h to hide the stolen goods. Ca$h asks Darren for help, and they hang out together socially. Amerie is still heartbroken, and seeks solace in the arms of Malakai. She and Malakai sleep together, and it is Amerie's first time.
4	4	"Rack Off"	Neil Sharma	Meyne Wyatt	14 September 2022 (2022-09-14)
Malakai is teased by his classmates in the locker room about ditching basketball tryouts to spend time with Amerie, and he unwillingly reveals intimate details about their encounter. Many of the students end up attending the same Mardi Gras event. Quinni feels alienated by Sasha spending so much time with Missy Beckett (Sasha's ex-girlfriend) and making choices on Quinni's behalf to keep her safe, Quinni tells her it's a shitty thing for anyone to be stood up (not just because she likes schedules) and that she can look after herself. Darren and Ca$h kiss at the event. Malakai is assaulted by a police officer, and Amerie records the incident and accidentally uploads it onto social media. Malakai is extremely distressed and traumatised, and he runs away from Amerie and her friends. Dusty and Harper follow him to offer their support, and they end up having a threesome together.
5	5	"Bin Chicken"	Adam Murfet & Jessie Oldfield	Thomas Wilson-White	14 September 2022 (2022-09-14)
It's clean-up day at Hartley High, and there is a prize for the person who picks up the most rubbish. Someone anonymously reveals in SLT's class that Malakai, Dusty and Harper had a threesome together. Darren and Ca$h are supposed to go on a date, but they end up escorting Ca$h's grandmother to a poker game with her friends. Dusty starts treating Harper differently after the threesome, and she angrily calls him out about it in front of the whole school. Amerie and Malakai also break up, and Malakai is struggling with both the trauma of experiencing police brutality and also feeling embarrassed by the video of him circulating around on social media.
6	6	"Angeline"	Adam Murfet & Jessie Oldfield	Natesha Somasundaram	14 September 2022 (2022-09-14)
Quinni is excited to attend a book signing by her favourite author, Rhea Brown (Natalie Tran), whose books she has been reading for ages. Sasha accompanies Quinni to the event, but gets frustrated when Quinni declines to attend Amerie's costume party with her afterwards as she needed to rest. When Sasha ultimately declares that Quinni is preventing her from being a quote unquote "normal" teenager, Quinni leaves and has a meltdown and doesn't talk most of the next episode. Harper finds out that she has chlamydia, and is nervous to tell Dusty and Malakai. She ends up telling Dusty right before he has sex with Amerie, and stops them. Missy's brother saves Malakai from jumping off Amerie's roof as he was drunk.
7	7	"The Sheriff"	Gracie Otto	Megan Palinkas & Matthew Whittet	14 September 2022 (2022-09-14)
Jojo is anonymously accused of having a sexual relationship with Amerie, and the police conduct an investigation. Amerie and Jojo both deny the allegations and Jojo is eventually cleared of the charges, but she is distressed by the situation and decides to quit teaching. The students stage a protest because they want Jojo to return as their teacher. Ca$h tells Darren that he is asexual. It is revealed that on the night of the music festival Amerie and Spider hooked up, and also that Harper knocked on Amerie's window while Spider was in her room. Amerie pretends she can't hear her because she doesn't want Harper to know who she was with. After the protest, Amerie walks home and sees an ambulance in front of Harper's house. Harper walks out of her front door covered in blood.
8	8	"Three of Swords"	Gracie Otto	Hannah Carroll Chapman	14 September 2022 (2022-09-14)
Harper finally tells Amerie about what happened on the day of the music festival. In the morning, Harper's father, Justin (Ben Oxenbould), is quite agitated and asks her for money (presumably for meth). She leaves her home and meets up with Amerie, and they cross paths with Chook and his crew. Harper and Amerie get split up at the festival, and Harper's phone runs out of battery. She drinks alcohol and blacks out, and then wakes up in Chook's car with his crew. Chook implies that he will sexually assault her. They stop at a petrol station, and Ca$h unlocks the door, quietly urging Harper to leave. After attempting to stay at Amerie's place, Harper then went home, where her father was experiencing meth-induced psychosis, and he attempts to kill her. She explains that her father experienced meth-induced psychosis yet again, and this time she stabbed him with a knife while defending herself (hence why she is covered in blood). Amerie is stunned at all of this information and apologises to Harper for ignoring her knocks on the window. The two girls make up and become friends again. They get Ca$h to send them footage of Harper in the car (on the night of the festival), and they send it to the police. Chook's entire crew get arrested, excluding Chook. Ca$h declares his love to Darren before getting taken into custody by the police. Because he avoided arrest, Harper and Amerie vandalise and set fire to Chook's car.

Season 2 (2024)

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original release date
9	1	"Bird Psycho"	Gracie Otto	Hannah Carroll Chapman	11 April 2024 (2024-04-11)
Amerie has become extra protective of Harper. During school photos the students get introduced to a new sports teacher, Timothy Voss, and a new student, Rowan Callaghan. Rowan ends up becoming mates with Malakai and Mr Voss seems unimpressed by the SLT class. During SLTs, Spider voices his hate for the class and convinces all of the cisgender boys to leave, who form a new group called "The Cumlords" with Mr Voss leading. Amerie and Malakai have sex in the stair-well, but Amerie states that Harper is her priority. Later, we see a dead ibis bird on Harper's bag, the first act of the culprit dubbed "Bird Psycho". Amerie, Quinni and Darren confront Chook at his house to learn it's not him. Chook gets them to leave, but keeps Darren behind to tell them that Ca$h was in on Harper's kidnapping, causing their trust in Ca$h to falter. Harper tells Amerie to stop worrying about her, so Amerie becomes a candidate for school captain along with Sasha and Spider, then tells Malakai that she has more time for their relationship. Eliminated suspects: Spider, Chook.
10	2	"SLTs vs C**LORDs"	Gracie Otto	Marieke Hardy	11 April 2024 (2024-04-11)
Bird Psycho creates an online forum to bully Amerie, causing tension. Quinni suspects Sasha but finds she's innocent. The Cumlords clash with the SLT's over field use, resolved with a rugby game, won by the girls. Harper feels overwhelmed and wants to drop the case, supported by Amerie. Ca$h's grandmother convinces Darren to reconcile with Ca$h. Chook reassures Ca$h of their bond and continues trying to get in contact with Ca$h throughout the season. Malakai might be bisexual, as he supposedly talked to Missy about it over the holidays. Amerie wants to date Malakai. Later the two go to an escape room, Malakai sees Rowan, and gets him to join. Rowan tells Malakai he's bisexual. At Amerie's house Malakai refuses any sexual activity and they argue. Malakai later meets Rowan unexpectedly at his work, signaling potential attraction. Eliminated suspects: Spider, Chook, Sasha.
11	3	"The Feelings Pit"	Gracie Otto	Jean Tong	11 April 2024 (2024-04-11)
The Cumlords use a "feelings pit" to bury emotions. Rowan confides in Malakai about feeling confused after spending time together. Malakai admits he may still have feelings for Amerie and discusses his sexuality with Darren, who advises honesty. Quinni's still investigating Bird Psycho. Three groups compete in a fundraising contest, with tensions rising between Spider and Missy as they keep sniping at each other, they may like each other and we know this for sure after Missy dreams about Spider. Amerie suspects Malakai's sexuality and trys to use the "feelings pit" to see whats on his mind and later confronts him, leading to Bird Psycho framing her. Malakai eventually opens up and later engages in a sexual encounter with Rowan. Woodsy bars Ca$h from school, prompting Darren's concern. Harper convinces Woodsy to let Ca$h back. Eliminated suspects: Spider, Chook, Sasha, Anthony.
12	4	"Legs Open Hearts Broken"	Neil Sharma	Thomas Wilson-White	11 April 2024 (2024-04-11)
The students go to camp, and Quinni's phone records her, Amerie and Harper discussing Bird Psycho. While playing "Never have I ever" Darren gets jealous of all the sexual activities Ca$h has done with others and talks to him about it. The next day, Bird Psycho plays Quinni's recording to frame Amerie. Mr Voss, annoyed with the gossip, leads the students blindfolded into the woods and leaves them to find their way back. They later get high on mushrooms, except Quinni who wants to investigate Zoe. While high, Spider and Missy kiss and make out, and Malakai mistakes Rowan for Amerie, upsetting Rowan who then leaves. Amerie does not involve herself with Malakai, and the next day she talks to Rowan about it. Quinni, while looking for her phone, gets bitten by a snake. The other students find her and save her, leaving the phone with Bird Psycho. Eliminated suspects: Spider, Chook, Sasha, Anthony, Zoe.
13	5	"The Demon King"	Neil Sharma	Sara Khan	11 April 2024 (2024-04-11)
Quinni needs to rest at home after the snake bite, but she continues investigating Bird Psycho; Amerie and Darren make her take a break from her new interest by taking her to the zoo. This makes her feel worse as they mention changes that Quinni missed out on, such as Harper moving in with Ca$h and Darren, or Amerie making campaign videos with Rowan. Quinni expresses her frustration to Darren and she decides to stop masking for others. Missy goes to Spider's house and is surprised by Spider's mother, Cait, who spends their lunch together expressing her hatred of men. In Spider's room, Missy learns that he can't "get it up". After breaking up with Malakai, Rowan spends time with Amerie at his house, and we see he has Quinni's phone in his drawer.
14	6	"Just Kid $h*t"	Jessie Oldfield & Adam Murfet	Keir Wilkins	11 April 2024 (2024-04-11)
Ca$h, Darren and Harper plan a party for their new house, but Ca$h can't as he has a final job with Chook. At the party, Darren wants Quinni's support as he's upset that Ca$h is late, but she chooses not to help. During the job with Chook, the boat's engine stops working and Ca$h and Chook talk about their perspectives of each other. Malakai has a week to decide if he will move with his mother to Geneva, right before the school formal, and Missy advises him to stay. Spider no longer wants to keep his relationship a secret, and talks to Missy about it. Amerie thanks Rowan for the video and asks him out. They go to a skate park, and Rowan says he doesn't think people will change until they're taught a lesson. He gets upset and suddenly leaves, later apologizing. Amerie reckons she wouldn't have known all the bad things she did if it wasn't for Bird Psycho, and the two kiss. Darren is devastated to find that Ca$h has been out with Chook, and leaves the housewarming party. Darren goes looking to find Jacob, an old mate, but finds Dusty instead.
15	7	"The Grapes of Voss"	Neil Sharma	Megan Palinkas	11 April 2024 (2024-04-11)
After realising she has not had her period, Amerie buys an abortion pill and tries to tell Malakai. Amerie tells Rowan they can't meet, then sends him an intimate photo. At school, Spider tells Sasha he is dropping out of the race, and Sasha realises Missy has been with him, confronting Missy about it. Missy tells Spider that he shouldn't drop out to impress her. Amerie experiences extreme cramps from the abortion, and Malakai and Harper spend the day with her. Meanwhile, Sasha and Spider make their speeches to the school, and Quinni (stepping in for Amerie) points out that neither actually care about the students, gaining support from the school body. Ca$h confirms with Dusty that he and Darren did not hook up. The next day, Quinni (who was not a candidate) is revealed to have won school captain, causing a food fight, and Woodsy fires Mr Voss for his improper behaviour. Ca$h breaks up with Darren as he can't give them what they want, prompting Darren to join the sex abstinent Puriteens. Sasha finds print-outs of Amerie's intimate photo, and Rowan harasses Malakai on the way home, telling him to stay away from Amerie.
16	8	"Boys Don't Cry"	Jessie Oldfield & Adam Murfet	Hannah Carroll Chapman	11 April 2024 (2024-04-11)
Amerie, Rowan and Harper help decorate the hall for the formal. Malakai warns Harper about Rowan, but she tells him to stay out of Amerie's life, and he writes a goodbye letter. Sasha shows Quinni the print-outs and they realise Bird Psycho is Rowan. Harper tells Amerie about Malakai's true feelings, making Amerie upset and confess that she loves Malakai back, breaking Rowan. The Cumlords (excluding Spider) wave torches around in protest, and Mr Voss sets fire to a line of flammable liquid that enters the school; the students in the burning hall escape. Amerie and Harper have been locked in the AV club room as Rowan shows them his sand animation film, depicting his previous interactions with Amerie. He explains that he became violent after Amerie betrayed him, causing Rowan's brother, Jett, to run to get their parents' help, getting hit by a car while crossing the road. Quinni saves Amerie and Harper, who were suffering from smoke inhalation, but Amerie goes back to save Rowan. Mr Voss is arrested, while the students make up with each other and dance while Hartley High burns.

Production

The series is a soft-reboot of the 1994 series first screened on Network Ten. The series follow the students and teachers of Hartley High as they navigate racial tensions in Australia, high school romances, and all sorts of teen angst.

The series was announced in December 2020. The TV series was mostly filmed in the suburbs of Maroubra and Matraville of New South Wales between November 2021 and February 2022.

A second season was announced on 19 October 2022. Production on the second season began on 28 May 2023 and wrapped on 29 August 2023. It was released on the 11th of April 2024.

A third and final season was announced on 9 May 2024.

Release

The first season premiered on 14 September 2022. The second season premiered on 11 April 2024.

Reception

Audience viewership

The first season of Heartbreak High debuted at number six on Netflix's Top 10 TV English titles for the tracking week of 19–25 September 2022 with 18.25 million hours viewed. On the following week, it climbed to number five and garnered 14.88 million viewing hours. The series remained in the top 10 for the third week, placing at number eight with 9.48 million viewing hours.

The second season debuted at number seven on Netflix's Top 10 TV English titles for the tracking week of 8-14 April 2024 with 15.8 million hours viewed. On the following week, it climbed to number five and garnered 20 million viewing hours. On its third week, it ranked at number nine, earning 12 million viewing hours.

Critical response

The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes gave the first season an approval rating of 100%, based on reviews from ten critics, with an average rating of 7.3/10. The second season has an approval rating of 50%, based on reviews from six critics, with an average rating of 6.4/10.

The show received praise for its racial, sexuality, gender and neurodivergent representation, realism towards modern teenhood, costumes and visuals. It was also positively compared to other popular modern teen dramas (which viewers found it very similar to), including Euphoria, Never Have I Ever and Sex Education. Alex Henderson of The Conversation said that the show addressed serious topics like substance abuse, discrimination or youth crime, but still uses comical moments and avoids cliché moments whilst showing mistakes made by the characters. Mitchell Adams of The Sydney Morning Herald commented on the representation of autism, saying "scenes where Quinni feels overwhelmed just sitting on a bus, or being at a party while forcing herself to mask how she feels in order to better fit in and not upset people, depict a pain neurodivergent people know all too well". Collider named the series as one of the best new TV shows of 2022.

Accolades

Award	Year	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
AACTA Awards	2022	Best Drama Series	Heartbreak High	Nominated
		Best Lead Actor in Drama	James Majoos	Nominated
		Best Supporting Actor in Drama	Thomas Weatherall	Won
		Best Direction in Drama or Comedy	Gracie Otto	Nominated
		Best Screenplay in Television	Hannah Carroll Chapman (for "Map Bitch")	Won
		Best Cinematography in Television	Simon Ozolins (for "Map Bitch")	Nominated
		Best Costume Design in Television	Rita Carmody (for "Map Bitch")	Won
		Best Production Design in Television	Marni Kornhauser (for "Map Bitch")	Nominated
		Best Casting	Amanda Mitchell	Nominated
		Audience Choice Award for Best Television Series	Heartbreak High	Won
		Audience Choice Award for Best Actor	Bryn Chapman-Parish	Won
			Thomas Weatherall	Nominated
		Audience Choice Award for Best Actress	Chloé Hayden	Won
			Ayesha Madon	Nominated
			Asher Yasbincek	Nominated
AACTA International Awards	2023	Best Drama Series	Heartbreak High	Nominated
		Best Actor in a Series	Thomas Weatherall	Nominated
GLAAD Media Awards	2023	Outstanding New TV Series	Heartbreak High	Nominated
Logie Awards	2023	Most Popular Drama Series, Miniseries or Telemovie	Heartbreak High	Nominated
		Most Popular New Talent	Chloé Hayden	Nominated
			Ayesha Madon	Nominated
		Most Outstanding Supporting Actor	Thomas Weatherall	Won
International Emmy Awards	2023	Kids: Live-Action	Heartbreak High	Won

External links

• Heartbreak High at IMDb
• Heartbreak High on Netflix