Photo Illustration by Luis G. Rendon/The Daily Beast/Netflix
If you’re like me, bingeing a show devolves into Googling the actors, segues into deep-diving on their life stories, and culminates in a fine-toothed comb analysis of their Instagrams. What you’re searching for is confirmation that the actors are friends in real life—you want to believe that the chemistry was real.
There’s something satisfying about a close knit cast that changes the experience of watching a show and being a fan; imagining them as friends off camera makes viewing them on camera even more fun. If it appears they were just coworkers, outsized disappointment ensues. Like finding out Carrie and Samantha (erm, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kim Cattrall) don’t get along in real life.
Every now and then, though, the investigation yields exactly what you’re looking for: a cast that seems as bonded off screen as they are on. My current favorite iteration of this phenomenon is the Netflix teen drama/mystery series Outer Banks.