Prime Video’s "We Were Liars," adapted from E. Lockhart’s novel, has been trending in the top 5 on the platform. Its gripping plot and emotional twist deliver, but the “rich, white people bad” narrative sours the experience.
The story follows the Sinclair family on their private island, Beechwood, near Martha’s Vineyard- a liberal’s nightmare of wealth and “privilege.” As one character proclaims, the family estate was “built on a foundation of hate.”
Told through eldest Sinclair grandchild Cadence’s (Emily Alyn Lind) perspective, the show diverges from the book, per Elle, emphasizing a woke agenda. Notably, teen Johnny (Joseph Zada) is now gay, and patriarch Harris’s (David Morse) “racism and privilege” are emphasized.
Cousins Cadence, Johnny, and Mirren (Esther McGregor) spend summers on Beechwood with Gat (Shubham Maheshwari), who joins his uncle Ed (Rahul Kohli), partner to Johnny’s mother, Carrie (Mamie Gummer). Ed and Gat, of Indian descent, are the story’s moral anchors, alongside the “woke” teens rejecting their white, rich privilege. The teens are nicknamed “The Liars” for their childhood antics.
The show’s soundtrack, while praised, is marred by songs with lyrics that reject Jesus or ask, “Do you want to be a satanist with me?” The minor teen characters are also heavily sexualized and drink entire bottles of wine in front of their parents.
In episode 4, “The Fourth of You Lie,” Gat teases Cadence about her book, Caste, which she calls a “performative social justice how-to-manual” but insists she’s reading to “be a better person. To see.” This echoes episode 3, “The Ties Were Black, the Lies Were White" where she defends challenging Harris, saying, “I’m trying to call out injustice and use my privilege for good.”
Later in episode 4, Mirren and water taxi driver Ebon (Dempsey Bryk) bond over disdain for the secrets of the wealthy, citing “transphobe Republican senators with gay escorts on speed dial.”
In episode 5, “Lying Together in a Silver Lining,” Harris is chastised by Cadence again while Johnny says he’s just old, not racist:
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By episode 7, “Everybody Knows the Captain Lied,” the teens agree Harris is a “racist piece of sh*t” after Cadence calls lemons a “symbol of colonization":
We also learn Harris forced Carrie to choose between marrying Ed or having Harris cover up a crime Johnny committed. When Cadence confronts him over the matter, Harris insists he can’t be racist because he’s a Democrat:
The writers think they’re clever by slapping a “Democrat” label on Harris as if they’re not biased, but they’re obviously implying only Republicans are racist. It’s a cynical sleight-of-hand as they wink at the audience and feed the tired narrative that all roads to racism lead to the political right.
In episode 8, “My Friends are Lying in the Sun,” Harris softens after a tragic twist (a powerful, tear-jerking one at that), but Cadence still rejects him and Beechwood entirely.
In the end, "We Were Liars" is a glossy, well-acted drama that hooks you with a twisty plot and sun-soaked island vibes, but its heavy-handed, woke sermonizing on wealth, whiteness and privilege feels more like a liberal college lecture than entertainment. Racism is evil, of course, but the show’s sanctimonious tone makes it hard to enjoy without rolling your eyes.
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The Daily Show’s Jordan Klepper claims that it was conservative media that made Obama the "black" president.
— MRCTV (@mrctv) July 17, 2025
Don't know what media he was watching, but the only people obsessed with Obama's race were the left.
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