The Most Controversial TV Shows Streaming on Netflix Right Now

Netflix has put a lot of money into crafting original content, and it’s paid off big. According to Variety, the streaming service provider has seen a significant uptick in viewership for original content. While that means great things for the company, not every piece of original content is making everyone happy. In fact, Netflix has crafted original content that is genuinely controversial. So, what are the most controversial shows on the platform that you should be watching?

Insatiable says a lot about society

You can either be sweet and chubby or a thin sociopath. Or, at least that is what the producers of Insatiable believe. The Netflix Original follows a high schooler, Patty, as she begins to traverse the world as a suddenly-thin and hot teenager.

See, Patty was fat before a homeless guy punches her in the face and she has her jaw wired shut. When she returns to school after the summer, she is thin, and she has a choice of becoming one of the popular kids or making the popular kids suffer. She chooses the latter with behavior ranging from fist fights to trying to set the homeless man who granted her her good looks (in a roundabout way) on fire.

Insatiable caused controversy due to the fat-shaming undertones that exist, but what makes it truly controversial is what it says about the world and how people are categorized, both thin and overweight. The fat-shaming content caused controversy before the show was even released, according to The Daily Beast.

Atypical has a hard time navigating the spectrum

Atypical is a quirky comedy that delves into the dark side of family life. Sam, the main character, is on the autism spectrum. Now in high school, he must figure out the world of dating, friendships, and family life. With an overprotective mother, a sweet but clueless father, and a sister who appears to be on the brink of greatness or disaster, Atypical offers an interesting portrayal of Autism and its effects on the family dynamic, even if it isn’t entirely accurate.

When Atypical premiered many people offered Netflix praise for featuring autism in an organic way, but once the show premiered producers came under fire. First people had a problem with the fact that Keir Gilchrist, the actor who plays Sam, is not on the spectrum himself. Then fans turned on the show for what they perceive as an inaccurate depiction of autism, according to The Spectator.

While the show has its cringe-worthy moments, the cast’s dynamic acting more than makes it worthy of a binge. Atypical has been renewed for a third season.

Grace and Frankie is marred by salary disputes

This kitschy family comedy focuses on the lives of two formerly married couples, and their kids. The plot is a bit complicated, but Sol (Sam Waterson) and Robert (Martin Sheen) are law partners who fall in love and carry on a twenty-year affair before leaving their wives, Frankie (Lily Tomlin) and Grace (Jane Fonda). Grace and Frankie become unlikely allies as they find themselves suddenly single in their 70s. The former frenemies must figure out how to live together in a beach house without going crazy.

There isn’t much controversy in the show unless you consider extra-marital affairs, controversial. The cast, however, kicked up drama when it was revealed that Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin were being paid the same salary as their male counterparts. Fonda and Tomlin are the stars of the show, while Sheen and Waterson serve as supporting characters, according to The Wrap.

Further controversy occurred when the fifth season of the show focused entirely on whether Grace and Frankie should continue living independently. The same storyline did not follow the male stars in the show, although they are the same age.