No clickbait here – Netflix has a brand new thriller exploring the dark side of social media.

By Daniel Furn

Published: Wednesday, 11 August 2021 at 12:00 am

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What are people really like behind closed doors?

Much like Netflix‘s smash hit series You, this is the question the streaming service’s latest thriller Clickbait will be investigating, following seemingly typical father and husband Nick Brewer who mysteriously disappears.

Nick then appears in a social media video holding a sign saying, “I abuse women. At 5 million views, I die,” leading to his wife, sister and all those he holds dear discovering a side to him they didn’t know existed.

A chilling exploration of our virtual personas, how they increasingly diverge from our real lives and how social media can impact our deepest and darkest secrets, Clickbait looks to be a timely and modern examination of identity in the era of likes, filters and friend requests.

Here’s everything you need to know about the cleverly titled Clickbait.

Clickbait on Netflix release date

All eight episodes of Clickbait will be released worldwide on Netflix on Wednesday 25th August 2021.

Despite being set in the US, Clickbait was actually filmed in Melbourne, Australia where shooting began in December 2019. As with most TV projects, production was suspended in March 2020 due to the pandemic, eventually resuming in November.

Clickbait on Netflix cast

Entourage star Adrian Grenier takes on a very different role as the seemingly insincere and multifaceted Nick Brewer, while Get Out star Betty Gabriel plays his shocked wife Sophie.

The Ballad of Buster Scruggs actress Zoe Kazan portrays Nick’s sister Pia, who reluctantly teams up with Sophie in a desperate bid to find her missing brother.

Australian actor Phoenix Raei (Stateless) will also be searching for Nick as Roshan Amir, a detective at the Oakland police Station who endures endless media scrutiny as he investigates the case.

Elizabeth Alexander (The Secrets She Keeps), Abraham Lim (The Boys) and Jessie Collins (Zero Dark Thirty) are also on board for some digital detective work.

Clickbait on Netflix trailer

The full-length trailer was released in August 2021, only a few weeks before the show’s release date. It does a good job of explaining who Nick Brewer is – or at least who he pretends to be – before the doubts and accusations come piling in:

A brief earlier teaser also explained the premise fairly succinctly.

What is Clickbait on Netflix about?

Nick Brewer is a seemingly loving father to his two sons, perfect husband to wife Sophie and a good brother to sister Pia. However the family man mysteriously disappears one day, only to bizarrely appear in a social media video bloodied and beaten holding a sign that says, “I abuse women. At 5 million views, I die.”

Unsure what to believe, Sophie and Pia team join forces to find Nick despite not seeing eye-to-eye. But as the view count soars, more videos are added and every clue to his whereabouts reveals a side of Nick they had no idea about, the two women are soon questioning everything they know about someone they thought was a kind, loving man.

Will Nick be saved before the video reaches 5 million views? And indeed as more allegations are made and secrets are spilled, will anyone want to save him?

Told from revolving points of view, Clickbait explores themes of identity, in particular how social media has distorted our perception of others and allowed us to create personas that are far different to our true selves – and occasionally fuel dangerous impulses.

It’s a very Black Mirror-esque premise – so let’s hope the series can match the heights of Charlie Brooker’s influential series.

Looking for something else to watch? Check out our guide to the best series on Netflix and best movies on Netflix, or visit our TV Guide.

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