Abhiroop Das
Created by Sharon Horgan, HBO’s ‘Youth‘ journeys alongside Alex, a talented literary agent who finds herself at the youth of old age as she turns 50. Divorced and emotionally distant to a fault, Alex struggles to find new relationships and rejuvenate her romantic and sexual life. However, when her son sets out for college, an opportunity for a fresh start reveals itself. There is also her on-and-off relationship with Patrick, which constantly wrestles for attention in her mind as life throws more trouble along the way. The romantic comedy series, as such, charts whether Alex is able to battle her loneliness and find the human connection she truly needs, as she navigates midlife dating troubles and generational conflicts all at once.
Youth Draws From Sharon Horgan’s Life and Blurs the Lines Between Reality and Fiction
Sharon Horgan, creator of ‘Youth,’ has described the show as a work of autofiction, meaning that it takes real experiences and emotions from her life and transforms them into fictional characters and circumstances. In a conversation with the BBC, Horgan, who also plays the lead role in the show, mentioned that there are substantial elements taken from her own life, and added that “the good thing about writing autofiction is that no one really knows which bits are real and which bits aren’t, I guess, except the people.” Horgan, along with co-writer Sarah Simmonds, has thus used real-life details as a springboard for a more dramatic narrative that feels relatable for viewers.
A large chunk of ‘Youth’ draws from a very specific phase in Horgan’s personal life, as she elaborated in an interview with The Guardian. Horgan and her husband, producer Jeremy Rainbird, separated in 2019 after 14 years of marriage, and it left her with several thoughts and emotions. “When I found myself divorced,” she shared, “I genuinely thought I’d be alone forever. I didn’t even know if I’d ever have sex again.” At the same time, though, the actor found herself contrasting the feelings of loneliness with those of freedom. She recalled thinking that her kids had just finished school, which allowed her more flexibility regarding what she wanted next. The same feeling drives the creative engine of ‘Youth,’ as it is essentially about reinventing one’s life, especially when dealing with complex subjects such as divorce and menopause, to name a few.
Sharon Horgan and Team Researched the Generational Gap and its Psychological Effects
Parallel to the story of Alex, Sharon Horgan and team also found it important to tell a tale of multiple generations. Talking to the Los Angeles Times, she expressed a desire to explore “that very specific period of time when your children are grown up and really should be leaving home, and when your parents are getting older and need more help.” Thus, the family side of the story in ‘Youth’ entails an authentic depiction of such relationships, often drawing from Horgan’s own experiences. However, she also noted that the only completely fictional aspect is the mother-son relationship, considering that in real life she has two daughters, named Sadhbh and Amer.
The distinction didn’t stop Horgan’s research in any way, though, as she also began incorporating observations from outside her own life. To that end, she began looking into how young people use social media, while actor Aran Murphy, who plays Ruari, shared material that an 18-year-old might actually be watching. The team’s focus was to point out how isolating and challenging growing up in modern times can be. Thus, while some of the plot beats may have been developed from scratch, they ultimately draw from a shared emotional core.
Alex is Designed to Embody the Struggles Women Face in the Literary Industry
Another aspect of life that ‘Youth’ touches on is one’s anxiety about entering their 50s, particularly the fear that time is slipping out of one’s grasp. In her interview with the Los Angeles Times, Sharon Horgan talked about this mysterious feeling of a clock running out, identifying it as something distinct from the proverbial biological clock. In doing so, she also acknowledged that she wrote the story while living through this period herself, adding, “I’m delving into all sorts (of things) that’s happened over the last few years, but I’m also feeling like I’m in the present with it.” This gives the show a very unique sense of personality and authenticity, in a way that is as inspirational as it is relatable.
Given that the main character, Alex, has a background in the literary and publishing field, Sharon and her team also found themselves digging into the real-life aspects of the industry, both in its glamor and mundanity. The reason Sharon chose this specific profession is simple: she wanted to give Alex a profession in which women are expected to devote enormous amounts of their personal time, while simultaneously being asked to look after their families and other domestic responsibilities. To tap into this further, Sharon also attended women’s literary award shows, and the result is a character who is able to channel these complex real-life anxieties to her fullest.
Read More: Youth: Is The Laville Agency Based on a Real Book Agency?
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