'Generation': Release date, plot, cast, trailer and all you need to know about HBO Max's Gen Z dramedy series
In case you were craving more 'Euphoria', 'Grand Army', 'Degrassi'-type fare, you're in luck. HBO Max is bringing 'Generation', an original series, to its lineup to do just that. In some ways, however, with its focus on relationships and sexuality, it is also a throwback to older dramas like 'Dawson's Creek', only this time with a Generation Z flavor for whom things like gender-bending, and fluid sexualities are part of the cultural zeitgeist they grew up with. With 19-year-old Zelda Barnz as the co-creator of the series, it certainly aims to speak for the teenage experience in 2021.
Release Date
The series will premiere with the first three episodes on HBO Max on Thursday, March 11, 2021
Plot
'Generation' is a dark yet playful half-hour series following a diverse group of high school students whose exploration of modern sexuality (devices and all) will test deeply entrenched beliefs about life, love, and the nature of family in their conservative community.
Cast
Justice Smith
Justice Smith plays Chester, one of the lead characters, a flamboyant, attention-grabbing queer teen. Smith is best known for his roles as Franklin Webb in the 2018 science fiction film 'Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom', Tim Goodman in 'Detective Pikachu' and Theodore in 'All the Bright Places'.
Martha Plimpton
Martha Plimpton plays Megan, a magnetic Adderall-fueled type-A Orange County mother whose core convictions clash with the values of her children’s generation. Other actors on the cast include Nathanya Alexander, Chloe East, Nava Mau, Lukita Maxwell, Haley Sanchez, Uly Schlesinger, Nathan Stewart-Jarrett and Chase Sui Wonders.
Creators
The series is created by daughter and father duo, Zelda Barnz and Daniel Barnz. It is executive produced by Daniel Barnz, Ben Barnz and Zelda Barnz for We’re Not Brothers Productions, Lena Dunham for Good Thing Going Productions, Sharr White and John Melfi. Writers include Zelda Barnz, Daniel Barnz, Lena Dunham, Sharr White, Max Saltarelli, Eli Wilson Pelton and Christina Nieves. Directors include Daniel Barnz, Channing Godfrey Peoples, Chioke Nassor, Catalina Aguilar Mastretta, Anu Valia and Andrew Ahn.
Trailer
The trailer introduces some of the main characters in their sunlit adolescence as they explore their world while pushing limits and boundaries - from their sexualities, conservative parents, and even the friendly school guidance counselor. While most of them are confident in their demeanor, they are also terribly fragile with their hidden insecurities. As Chester, the queer student tells the guidance counselor at the start of the trailer, "I’m, like, a lot".
If You Like This, You'll Love
'Euphoria'
'Grand Army'
'Never Have I Ever'
'Degrassi: Next Class'
'Freaks and Geeks'