So the SATs are in two weeks, right?
Yeah.
We should probably schedule more tutoring sessions.
[DRAMATIC MUSIC]
HANNAH FIDELL: I made the movie "A Teacher" in 2012.
It came out in 2013.
What I loved so much about turning this idea into a show
is that we get to explore characters
over a much longer time.
We actually can see why the relationship
happens, how it happens, and study the consequences of it.
Miss Wilson, are you laughing at me?
You don't have to call me Miss Wilson
when we're not in school.
I had seen Hannah's film, "A Teacher," and I loved it.
I thought it was really well done.
We kind of wanted, creatively, to start from scratch.
Kate has been a partner in this for many years.
I developed this iteration with her and wrote it for her.
ERIC WALKER: Where are you taking me?
Because I kind of feel like you're kidnapping me.
Nick, I have been a fan of for years.
KATE MARA: We convinced him to meet us and have a coffee,
and we just knew that he was our guy.
NICK ROBINSON: I read the scripts,
and the material was so compelling, and just
really smart and well-written.
I just-- you know, I couldn't say no.
ERIC WALKER: I--
I liked being out in the world with you.
HANNAH FIDELL: Casting Nick, too--
the thing that we really liked about him
was that if you saw him and Kate on the street
together, and didn't know that Claire
and Eric were teacher and student, that it
wouldn't feel that weird.
Hey.
This is--
I'm Claire.
Hello, Claire, what's up? Cody.
Nice to meet you.
We brought in psychologists who specialize in male victims
of sexual abuse.
NICK ROBINSON: That was really interesting, to sort of hear
firsthand what Eric is very likely going through
and feeling, and how this trauma, whether he knows it
or not, is kind of manifesting itself.
ERIC WALKER: I'm the mother-mother-[BLEEP] man.
NICK ROBINSON: He's a mature 17-year-old old.
He's sort of a caretaker for his family.
His mom is a single mother and he's
helping raise his siblings.
I think seeing Eric in these different situations
brings out his humanity.
KATE MARA: As an actor, I tried to look
at Claire as someone who believes what she's doing
is somewhat OK.
I've never felt this way before.
I've never given myself permission to feel this way.
KATE MARA: I read a lot of articles about it
and I watched some documentaries about different teachers trying
to find out what might have led them to choosing
this specific thing.
I'm too attracted to you.
I feel like I can't trust myself around you.
HANNAH FIDELL: To me, it's about trying to understand
what leads her to making the decision
to sleep with her student.
I just really want to start a family with you.
Can we just talk about this another time?
HANNAH FIDELL: Claire feels so much
like she could be one of us.
And to me, that's the most terrifying thing.
I like you, too.
That's why I'm here.
NICK ROBINSON: Hannah has a really keen eye for what she
wants, but she still has an amazing ability to just
let things unfold naturally.
HANNAH FIDELL: It's very important to me
that I'm in it with the actors, that we function as a unit,
that we trust each other.
It is just as much their project as it is mine.
KATE MARA: Hannah is so inclusive,
and everything very much felt like it was a team effort.
I feel very lucky that we've gone on this journey together.
HANNAH FIDELL: It's been amazing.
I've been developing this show for five, six years,
and seeing it all come together-- it's a dream.
My god, who is this guy?
No.
FRIEND: Please.
I can't, no.
FRIEND: Please I promise I won't tell anybody.
[DRAMATIC MUSIC]