Is ‘13 Reasons Why’ Based on a True Story and is Hannah Baker Real?

Over a year has passed since Netflix released new episodes of 13 Reasons Why. The teen drama, which first premiered on the streamer in 2017, followed a harrowing tale of a suicide note in the form of audiotapes. An interesting fact about 13 Reasons Why: inspiration struck the original writer of the story, Jay Asher, when he was on an audio tour, who said he was shocked by “the eeriness” of listening to “a woman who described exactly what he was looking at, but wasn’t there.” Creepy! But is the rest of the show based on a true story? Is Liberty High a real place? We have your answers.

The first season, which was originally set as a limited series, followed the wake of Hannah Baker (Katherine Langford), a teen who died by suicide and left tape recordings for all of the ex-friends and lovers who had wronged her. Produced by Selena Gomez, the teen drama was such a hit that it got extended by three more seasons on Netflix. Though Hannah’s story had wrapped by the end of the first episodes, plenty of new drama unfolded amongst Clay (Dylan Minnette), Jess (Alisha Boe), Justin (Brandon Flynn), and the other teens of Liberty High.

But is 13 Reasons Why based on a true story, and is Hannah Baker’s tragedy real? There may be some truth to her story, after all. Here’s everything you need to know:

Is 13 Reasons Why based on a true story? Is Hannah Baker real?

No, 13 Reasons Why is not based on a true story, and Hannah Baker is not a real person. The original writer of the story did open up about what 13 Reasons Why is based on, so keep reading to find out more.

There is, however, a documentary about the creation of 13 Reasons Why and mental health issues portrayed in the series. It’s called 13 Reasons Why: Beyond the Reasons, and there are three episodes streaming on Netflix.

Is 13 Reasons Why based on a book? Who is 13 Reasons Why based on?

Yes, 13 Reasons Why is based on a popular teen novel of the same name written by Jay Asher. The book was originally published in 2007, and follows the events of the first season, navigating between Hannah and Clay’s perspective. Though the novel isn’t based on a true story, Asher did open up about the situations being based “loosely” on situations that happened in real life.

“All of the reasons Hannah describes were based, at least loosely, on situations I’d either experienced or heard about, mostly from my wife or close female friends. While Hannah wasn’t specifically based on anyone, her character always felt very real. So it was a matter of interpreting those situations through her thoughts and feelings,” he told Coming Soon. “But, years before I came up with the premise, a close relative of mine attempted suicide when she was also a junior in high school. When I eventually did come up with the idea, it was obvious why it came to me as a female in high school.”

Will there be a Season 5 of 13 Reasons Why?

Nope. The delay in new episodes is permanent, unfortunately, because 13 Reasons Why ended with Season 4. Though we won’t get a Season 5, fans of cast members Alisha Boe and Brandon Flynn will be excited to learn that they’ve just joined a new film together: Who Am I? will reunite the 13 Reasons Why co-stars.

Stream 13 Reasons Why on Netflix