Is Wayward based on a true story? Here's everything to know about the Netflix miniseries

Netflix's latest miniseries, Wayward, starring Toni Collette and Mae Martin, premiered on September 25, 2025. All eight episodes were released simultaneously on the premiere day.

Created by Feel Good's Mae Martin, set in 2003, the series explores the lives of students at Tall Pines Academy, a residential school for 'troubled' teens led by a cruel headmaster, Evelyn. It turns out the Academy is not as it appears; it is mysterious and hides terrible secrets. The story centers on two new students, Abbie and Leila, along with Alex Dempsey, a recently relocated transgender cop trying to uncover the dark secrets of Tall Pines Academy. Will they succeed in their mission and expose the truth, or will they fail?

Since the series dropped on Netflix, viewers have one question in mind: Is Wayward based on a true story or not? It turns out, Wayward is a fictional series.However, it is inspired by the real-life events of creator and actor Mae Martin- an event involving their best friend, who was sent to a similar institution for troubled teens.

Continue reading to know more.

Is Wayward based on a true story? Here's what creator Mae Martin revealed

Wayward creator Mae Martin revealed that the series is a fictional story loosely inspired by their own experiences in the early 2000s. During that time, mental health issues were rarely discussed, and many people were skeptical about seeking help. It was also a period when rebellious youth were labeled as wayward teens and sent to questionable institutions for correction. Martin shared how their best friend Nicole was sent to an institution (therapeutic school) at 16 years.

Even though Martin was not sent to a wilderness program or an institution, their best friend was. This traumatic event inspired them to create Wayward, which is also based on such institutions for troubled teens, and gives a sneak peek into the sinister activities behind the walls of these facilities. Speaking to Radio Times, Martin revealed that their best friend's parents tricked her into visiting New York for a meeting with David Letterman, and she never returned or contacted them for about a year.

Martin reconnected with their best friend a year after her sudden disappearance. Speaking to Tudum, they said,

"She came back and had just the craziest stories about it.”

Martin further told Radio Times,

"When she came back, the stories that she had, I just couldn't stop thinking about it," they said. "The therapies are so theatrical and bizarre. It's like behavioural modification programmes."

Martin added how they felt like their best friend was similar to Sydney Topliffe's character in Wayward, Abbie. They said,

"I felt a lot of guilt. And that's sort of where the kernel of this show came from. She was very much an Abbie-type character and so I was imagining what it would have been like if I'd gone to rescue her, or if we'd been in there together, how we would have responded differently to that programme."

They also drew inspiration from projects like Fargo, Get Out, and Girl, Interrupted. Besides Nicole, Martin's best friend, an unnamed person from the writer's room also shared their experience of struggling in such institutions for troubled teens.

The Hot Seat game sequences from Wayward, where students verbally humiliate each other, were inspired by the activities of Synanon, a controversial religious movement led by Charles E. Dederich. Originally a drug rehabilitation program, the group practiced weird group truth-telling sessions where participants shouted truths about each other.

The troubled teen industry: What is it all about?

The Troubled Teen Industry (TTI) is a multi-billion-dollar network of private programs that claims to treat at-risk youth with intense boot camps, wilderness therapy, boarding schools, and behavior modification centers. Children are often sent involuntarily to these institutions. These programs exploit parents' fears and place students or participants into methods that use cruel tactics like sleep deprivation, forced labor, isolation, and even abuse.

In 2014, a campaign called Breaking Code Silence was launched to encourage participants to speak about their traumatic past. With celebrities like Paris Hilton publicly criticizing TTI, and shows like Wayward revealing the abuses, the TTI industry is now in the spotlight.

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Also read: Wayward: Exploring hypermasculinity was ‘juicy,’ says Mae Martin, here's all about it

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