Details That Slipped Under The Radar In Netflix’s Hit Show: ‘You’

By Ange Arnal 11 months ago

1. There's a sneaky clue that foreshadows the end, right at the beginning of the first episode

joe holding edgar allen poe book - you season four
imagesource: insider
When Joe assigns Edgar Allan Poe's story, "The Tell Tale Heart" to his class, what a lot of people don't realise is that this story is about a man who had just committed a gruesome murder and dismembered his victim' body. This is exact what happens later in the series with Malcolm's body.

2. Joe's mention of 'Notting Hill'

Where Was 'You' Season 4 Filmed? All The London Filming Locations You Can Actually Visit
imagesource: timeout
When talking about his move to London, Joe mentions how he is not 'Hugh Grant' looking for his Notting Hill romance. The 90s rom-com movie follows Grants character - a bookseller who falls in love. Similarly, Joe sees himself as a bookseller who falls in love...only a much darker version.

3. Kate's first introduction indicates that she's hiding something

phoebe and kate instagram
imagesource: insider
All of Lady Phoebe's social circle were extremely popular on social media with thousands or even millions of followers. The only one who wasn't, was Kate! Kate had 211 followers and used it for work. Kate had such a small social presence that Lady Phoebe's followers would who she was when she posted her.

4. It's revealed early that Lady Phoebe has multiple stalkers

phoebe news - you season four
imagesource: insider
While Joe was researching Lady Phoebe, he came across an article that mentions about her having "another stalker" - alluding that she's had more than one. This could also be another reason as to why she's desperate to leave the city when the news breaks about the Eat the Rich Killer.

5. There are clues on Adam's social media about him being American

adam instagram american lyric in caption
imagesource: insider
Adam is the only one of Lady Phoebe's friends who is American. His Instagram page shows captions with song lyrics from Don McLean's American Pie and also a comment referencing American hit, John Denver's "Take Me Home, Country Roads."

6. The newspaper Joe is reading has an article about Lady Phoebe on the front page

joe holding newspaper about lady phoebe
imagesource: insider
While Joe follows Marianne at the train station, he's holding a newspaper featuring a story about Lady Phoebe on the front page. The headline talks about an incident where she flashed a camera her underwear whilst drunk. Most people will have completely missed this little easter egg though.

7. The art gallery Kate works at is named after a mythological figure

clothos gallery sign - you season four
imagesource: insider
Clotho is a figure from Greek mythology who is known for being the youngest of the Three Fates and someone who held the threads of human life. Clotho was also the one who decided when a person was born or killed. Quite fitting really when you think about it!

8. Adam isn't named after his father as other generations of men in his family were

you season four articles about adam's family pointing to III and IV in name alexandar
imagesource: insider
When Joe is looking up articles about Adam, he finds an entire page about Adam's family. Adam's father and grandfather were named Alexander Pratt and his father was the fourth person to have been named Alexander. However, Adam and his brother Jace weren't given that name.

9. The articles in Joe's apartment...

articles on joe's wall next to peach article suicide note
imagesource: insider
The articles we see in Joe's apartment show Peach's s*icide note and confirm Ellie disappeared after Delilah's death. His stalker wall shows all the people who have been killed or gone missing from Joe's past. Did you notice any of these little snippets?

10. Rhys' reading at Simon's funeral

rhys in suit - you season four
imagesource: insider
Rhys reads a Joan Didion quote at Simon's funeral which was about mourning. Joe's ex Love from season two and three had previously recommended Didion to Joe at the beginning of season two after he said he hadn't read any of her work. Remember that?

11. Joe ignoring Gemma when she approaches him

Gemma in red looking concerned - you season four
imagesource: insider
A few of the characters in the series noticed that Joe ignored Gemma whenever she approached him. He focuses his internal thoughts and doesn't say a word to her for a full minute. His lack of response to her was picked up by the likes of Marnie and Forty.

12. Mirroring scenes

love with handcuffs to her throat next to joe with knife to his
imagesource: insider
Remember the scene where Kate holds a knife up to Joe's throat as she questions him? She only releases the knife when he mentions that he has a son. Well the same thing happened when Joe held handcuffs to Love's throat. Mentioning Henry saved Love's life at the end of season 2.

13. Joe's prediction for Edward and Nadia's relationship

nadia on you season four
imagesource: insider
During the first episode, Joe said to Edward and Nadia that they would either kill or marry each other. Well, he sort of guessed what was going to happen - during the second half of season 4, he kills Joe and frames Nadia for the murder. Joe made it seem like Nadia had killed her boyfriend.

14. Phoebe's diagnosis of Dawn

students reading article about dawn on you
imagesource: insider
The article about the "Eat the Rich Killer is Erotomaniac" confirms Phoebe's assessment of her stalker was in fact correct. The tern erotomaniac - a rare delusional disorder where a person believes that another person is in love with them - comes back later in the season when Joe believes this applies to him.

15. Marianne's passport gives away her age

marienne passport on you with arrow on her birthday
imagesource: insider
Another little snippet that a lot of us may not have noticed or even realised was the scene in which we see Marianne's passport. This reveals that she was born on March 23, 1993 making her 30 years old and an Aries... just in case you were wondering.

16. The newspaper Joe reads shares a name with a paper that's not been active for a long time

joe reading the london dispatch
imagesource: netflix
Joe checks an online newspaper called 'The London Dispatch' to confirm the news about Rhys' book being exaggerated. 'The London Dispatch' shares the name with a real London newspaper that has in fact not been active in decades. It was once a real active newspaper!

17. Phoebe's wedding hair is inspired by a famous late actress

phoebe wedding look on you with stuff in her hair next to sharon tate wedding photo, she has stuff in her hair
imagesource: insider
Phoebe refers to the late Princess Diana and actress Sharon Tate as inspirations for her own looks throughout. Her hair was modelled on Sharon Tate's bridal look - the very 1960s-style bouffant with flowers in it. Very 60s, very Sharon Tate...very 'British invasion'.

18. Joe's takeout order for Marianne

you joe holding red takeout bag and marienne grabbing red takeout bag from in box
imagesource: insider
Within the first few minutes of episode one of season four, we see Joe carrying a red bag from Tandoori Tradition into his flat. It's then revealed in a timeline that he was feeding Marianne her takeout showing when he remembered to buy her food. Creepy, hey!

19. Joe's peanut-oil dream sequence

benji coffee kill You
imagesource: netflix
Joe's dream where he accidentally kills Marianne by putting peanut oil in her coffee is a reference to Benji's death in season one. Joe killed him by putting peanut oil in his coffee to induce a fatal allergic reaction - just like the dream he has about Marianne.

20. Joe's suicide letter

joe suicide note hemmingway
imagesource: insider
At the end of the season, Joe write a suicide note in which we can see phrases like "has led me" and "on my way". Hemingway's name also makes an appearance as well but it's unclear as to why he is mentioned in the note. Maybe we will eventually find out?

21. Kate's passcode

you phone passcode
imagesource: netflix
Remember when we saw Kate's phone being unlocked? Her lock code is 250903, which Joe's hallucinated "Rhys" says is Rothko's birthday. Mark Rothko - who was an abstract painter - was born on September 25th, 1903. 250903...get it? Whoever made this show needs a raise, am I right?

22. The second season's finale song

imagesource: twitter
Taylor Swift's hit song "Anti-Hero" was played during the final scenes of this season's finale. Swift's track "Exile" was also played during a montage that showed Joe's circle from the season continuing their lives after Joe avoids being caught for the murders.

23. Things you didn't know about 'You'

You series 4 part 1, Netflix, review: Joe Goldberg gets a taste of his own murderous medicine
imagesource: inews
If you've been a fan of the show since the beginning, you may be surprised to find out some of the 'things you may not have known' about the series. There are tonnes of behind the scenes facts for you to sink your teeth in, but for the meantime, here are a few.

24. 'You' was originally cancelled after one season

In 'You' Season 4, Joe Goldberg Is No Longer in Control - The New York Times
imagesource: thenewyorktimes
You originally aired on Lifetime but after they passed on renewing You for a second season, Netflix wiggled their way in and saved the show after buying it's rights. It has since become one of the most popular and talked about shows on Netflix's service.

25. Penn Badgley almost turned down the role

Netflix's You: Why Penn Badgley accepts Joe Goldberg - BBC News
imagesource: BBC
Can you imagine Joe Goldberg without Penn Badgley? I can't! He also told Entertainment Weekly: "I didn’t want to do it — it was too much. I was conflicted with the nature of the role. If this is a love story, what is it saying?... I knew that I would be conflicted about the role from day one till the last day, and that is why they thought I would be good for it, is that I’m not psyched to play somebody of this nature."

26. Victoria Pedretti auditioned for season one's Beck

You Season Two Found Its Perfect Match in Victoria Pedretti | Vanity Fair
imagesource: vanityfair
Victoria told Elle, "I auditioned for the first season, for Beck, and had a call-back with the producer. I didn't get the job, but I'm glad I didn't, because it meant that I was able to do 'The Haunting of Hill House,' and it meant that I was able to come back to play Love."

27. Dylan Arnold (Theo), originally auditioned for Joe and Forty

Victoria Pedretti and Dylan Arnold auditioned for different roles in YOU
imagesource: thetab
He told Vogue, “So I auditioned for Joe for season one, and then I auditioned for Forty for season two, and now, third time’s the charm, I got Theo in season three." Can you imagine Dylan Arnold playing the role of Joe - I really couldn't imagine anyone else but Penn!

28. Penn Badgley's gruesome moments

Netflix's 'You' Season 2 Fun Facts and Things You Didn't Know
imagesource: insider
Remember when Joe's finger was cut off in season 2? Well, in order to film that scene, Penn had to wear a prosthetic arm for the scene to look realistic. The prosthetic arm allowed the team to shoot the scene in the best way possible. It looked pretty real to me, so clever!

29. He also wore a prosthetic arm for the meat grinder scene

Gory Scene In You Season 2 Has Left Fans 'Physically Sick' - UNILAD
imagesource: unilad
Penn told TVLine: “We had a life-sized, very authentic prosthetic body. It was a headless body that was extremely realistic to touch and sight. All of the body hair, each hair, was a real human hair that was applied individually. So the amount of human labor that went into this body was pretty great. It was rigged so that it would bleed when you cut into it. There was also a removable arm."

30. Paco was created for the show for a special reason

Who plays Paco in You on Netflix? - Luca Padovan - YOU season 4: Who is in the... - PopBuzz
imagesource: popbuzz
Show runner, Sera Gamble told Variety, "Paco has been a character that illuminates the best, most compassionate side of Joe. He educates Paco, he gives Paco a sandwich when he’s hungry, he keeps Paco safe. And then [Paco] does this incredible thing in the finale [in return]."

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