The Wilds: 3 reasons to watch the Amazon Prime Video teen drama

The Wilds is a compelling teen drama that’s well worth a watch.

It may not come armed with big-named stars or huge budgets, but its mysterious plot and exploration of millennial themes will get you hooked.

We’ve outlined the three main reasons we think it’s your next binge watch.

It’s addictive

The premise of the show – that a group of troubled teenage girls en route to a Hawaiian retreat end up in a plane crash – sounds awfully like a young-adult version of Lost.

But don’t expect too much focus on Bear Grylls-style survival instincts (though there is some of that too). At its heart, The Wilds is an examination of the challenges that girls of different backgrounds face in modern life.

As the layers of each character slowly peel away and relationships are put to the test, the show gets more and more engrossing – and then we start to ask why the group is really stuck on the island. Is this more akin to a series of Big Brother?

All is not as it seems

As the girls come to terms with their new situation, there are hints that the truth has been hidden from them. Without giving too much away, it turns out that one of them has a hidden item  – and is it too much of a coincidence that every member of the group knows CPR?

It seems their parents have sent them on the ‘retreat’ with the knowledge that it’s not what the girls expected. However, it also seems unlikely that the parents realise exactly what they’ve got their daughters into.

The performances

Warning: Clip contains mature language

The beauty of The Wilds is that we don’t know a lot about any of the young actors, so we have no preconceptions of them.

Each episode focuses on one of the characters, who are giving an interview to two investigators after the ordeal and recalling their time on the island as well as what they were like before then.

The characters come from different backgrounds and struggle with different issues, but they are not overplayed or feel false. They particularly resonate with young women and expertly explore themes such as race, sex, friendship and privilege without making it feel forced or inauthentic.

Remember these actors, because you’ll probably see them go on to big things in their careers.

The first episode of The Wilds is free for Prime and Non-Prime members until December 26, 2020. The whole season is available to Prime members now.