Meet Amari Bacchus: A Star in the Making in Netflix's New Series Adolescence [Interview]

Amari Bacchus by TMSTakes

Some actors step onto the screen, and you instantly recognise the weight of their presence. The kind of performers who understand the gravity of storytelling, the significance of embodying a character, and the delicate balance of portraying human experience authentically. Amari Bacchus is one of them. At just 18, he delivers a performance in Netflix’s new limited series Adolescence, that cements him as a young actor to watch.

 

Netflix's New Series Adolescence, is an astounding, poignant, at times, shocking exploration of a 13-year-old boy accused of murdering a girl in his class. The series delves into themes of misogyny, the manosphere, and the insidious belief systems seeping into the minds of impressionable young boys through the internet. Amari plays Adam Bascombe, the son of detective inspector Bascombe (Ashley Walters), who relocates from London to Yorkshire for his father’s job. Adam is caught between the alienation of his new environment and the overwhelming toxicity of online culture, where he must navigate the coded language and ideologies that shape his peers.

 

Amari Bacchus by TMSTakes

Amari Bacchus' performance is remarkable because he doesn’t just act; he translates. Through Adam, he bridges generational gaps, articulating the silent confusion many young boys feel today.  “How I see it, my role is to get into the mind of a character and deliver it authentically”, he reflects.

Credits Netflix

 

From an early age, Amari was known in his family as someone who could mimic people with striking accuracy. “I’ve always been an observer,” he says. “I’d watch how people spoke, moved, reacted. It was like second nature to me.” This instinctive understanding of human behaviour led him to performing arts school, where he developed his technique and built a foundation that would later help him embody complex characters like Adam.

 

His influences are deeply rooted in cinematic legends. “I have so much respect for actors like Denzel Washington and Sidney Poitier. Watching them perform, I knew I wanted to be able to move people like that.” He studies their work intensely, paying attention to the subtle choices they make, when to hold back, when to let go, and how to make silence just as powerful as dialogue.

Amari Bacchus by TMSTakes

 

In Adolescence, Adam is the kind of boy who isn’t immediately noticed. He’s overlooked, bullied, and struggling to fit in both at school and within the chaotic and polarising online world. He isn’t fully immersed in the manosphere’s rhetoric, but he understands it enough to recognise its impact on his peers. “It’s one of the most important parts of the show,” Amari explains.

His father, played by Ashley Walters, represents another crucial element of Adam’s story: the significance of father-son relationships. 

In one of the most powerful scenes, Adam explains the hidden language of online misogyny to his dad, a man too consumed by work to have noticed what his son was up against. “That moment was crucial,” Amari says. “Adam is basically telling his dad to wake up, to pay attention to the world he’s living in. It’s not just about the case, it’s about their relationship.”

Amari Bacchus by TMSTakes

 

Masculinity, particularly for Black men, is often shaped by both personal circumstances and broader societal expectations. Adam’s experience highlights how the absence of a father figure due to work responsibilities creates a gap he feels compelled to fill. Being placed in an unfamiliar environment only amplifies this pressure, leading him to construct his idea of what it means to be a man. One that is modelled after the figure he admires most. Speaking on this, Amari explains how “​​In Adam’s head, he has a high sense of masculinity, he doesn’t want to show emotion. You see a lot of it facially and physically, but he doesn’t want to show his dad, so it comes out as awkward.”

 

He internalises the belief that masculinity requires strength and emotional restraint, avoiding vulnerability even when his feelings are evident through his physicality and expressions. This struggle reflects a wider societal narrative, where men, especially Black men, are conditioned to believe they must always embody resilience and protection. The expectation to be the one who stands in the way rather than stepping back reinforces rigid gender norms that overlook male vulnerability. “The show allows you to see they have emotions and there’s a lot going that an outsider wouldn’t see’.

Amari Bacchus by TMSTakes

 

The reality is that masculinity is not monolithic. Regardless of stature or demeanour, all men experience deep emotions. The show challenges these stereotypes by portraying male characters navigating complex emotions beneath the surface, proving that vulnerability is an integral part of the human experience, not a weakness.

 

Following the series’ release, Adolescence has received widespread acclaim for its raw storytelling and necessary conversations about masculinity and online radicalisation. For Amari, it marks the beginning of what looks to be a promising career. His outlook is so grounded and perceptive. “I want to be part of stories that elevate truth and have a real impact on culture," he explains. "As an actor, there’s always the desire to do a lot, but for me, it’s not about chasing glory. It’s about uncovering untold truths and shedding light on the stories we don’t know yet."

 

Looking ahead, he dreams of working with directors and actors who challenge him. “There are so many I look up to, but more than anything, I want to be part of good stories. That’s what I care about the most. “Amari Bacchus is not just a rising star with a sound grasp on what acting can do for untold and important stories, he has proven he has what it takes to leave a lasting impact on audiences.