Common Sense Media Pen15 (2025)

FAQs

Is Pen15 appropriate for 11 year olds? ›

Have been watching with my 11 yo daughter . Some of the content is mature and uncomfortable but has been a great way to talk about stuff that is sure to be on my kiddos mind. Maya and Anna make some awful mistakes about friendships and popularity and boys, and these are all learning moments.

Pen15 is an R-rated “traumedy” set in middle school as it really happened in the year 2000. Anna Konkle and Maya Erskine play versions of themselves as thirteen year old outcasts, surrounded by actual thirteen year olds.

Content Warnings. “PEN15” captures the hypersexualized and sometimes vulgar atmosphere of middle school. There's a lot of adult jokes and a few brief scenes of nudity (although the show clearly doesn't depict Anna and Maya being involved with any of their teenage co-stars).

A poignant coming-of-age comedy that hits all the right nostalgia notes for those who endured the trials of adolescence in the early 2000s. Konkle and Erskine maintain a deliciously kooky chemistry even when - especially when - the handling of the subject matter induces cringing.

Now we have '90s period piece “PEN15” from Hulu, a live-action series from Lonely Island producers Andy Samberg, Akiva Schaffer, Jorma Taccone, with its its own peculiar cause for alarm: Despite being surrounded by a teenage cast, the show's stars are played by two 31-year-old actors, Maya Erskine and Anna Konkle.

During this film we see young Vada begin to grow up. Unfortunately, an unexpected death will either drive her back into her previous loneliness, or give her the strength to tell the ones she loves that she cares about them. We award our Dove “Family-Approved” Seal to this film for ages twelve and above.

Maya is diagnosed with ADD and Irlen syndrome. Very shortly after Anna's grandmother comes to live with them, she passes away. At the funeral service, Anna and Maya can't stop giggling. Maya finally meets Derrick.

And then the pandemic hit. With just seven shooting days left, production was paused until it was safe to resume work and, in the meantime, both women gave birth and are currently promoting the final episodes of the show while also raising newborns with their partners. It was exhausting just writing that.

Erskine emphasized that the concept of the show is not to distract from the middle school setting or from the rest of the cast (who are all played by teenaged actors), but to actually help tone down the discomfort for viewers who might cringe away from watching actual middle schoolers suffer through, well, the cringey ...

The show's opening credits are a montage of real photos from the creators' peak awkward phases. PEN15 is a reflection of their middle-school selves, and the creators' real friendship. However, Konkle and Erskine's friendship didn't begin in middle school.

Why is it called PEN15? ›

The name “PEN15” comes from a schoolkid prank that begins with a question: Do you want to join the PEN15 Club? The suckers who say yes get the word Sharpied on their hands in such a way that it looks like “PENIS.” “It felt appropriate to name our show after the thing that rejects get branded,” Erskine said.

The comedic story of middle school seen through the eyes of two 7th grade girls dealing with the awkwardness of being a teenager.

The Episode app — despite how the company may rate it — is definitely not for children. There's too much exposure to sexual content, profanity, and other inappropriate situations, and this makes it belong firmly to the camp of “adults only.”

Netflix's You Is Definitely Not For Kids — Here's What to Know If Your Teen Is Asking to Watch.

It is fast paced, the characters are well developed and while it will appeal to Chucky fans or those who love horror movies this is not a film for children or young teens.

For younger teens, this might be a little too mature, especially given the sexual-assault content. “The Turn of the Screw” is a classic ghost story by Henry James that has been adapted numerous times since its publication in 1898.