Pilot is the first episode of the first season of You. It aired on September 9, 2018 on Lifetime.

Synopsis

A charming first encounter quickly turns into something more nefarious when bookstore manager Joe takes a very strong liking to grad student Beck.

Plot

Bookstore manager Joe Goldberg meets aspiring writer Guinevere Beck at Mooney's, the bookstore where he works. They engage in a playful conversation about authors, and Joe discovers her full name as she pays. After she leaves, Joe becomes infatuated with her. He searches for her online, discovers her address, and begins observing her activities. Joe follows Beck to her apartment and watches her through her window. He also monitors her social media accounts to learn more about her life.

At his apartment, Joe interacts with his young neighbor, Paco, who lives with his mother, Claudia, and her abusive boyfriend, Ron. Joe gives Paco a meatball sub and discusses books with him, showing a caring side.

To gather more information about Beck, Joe calls in a fake gas leak to gain access to her apartment while she is out. Inside, he goes through her belongings, including her laptop and underwear drawer. He hides in the shower when Beck returns unexpectedly and overhears her phone conversation, learning about her plans for the evening.

Joe attends an open mic night where Beck reads her poetry. Afterward, Beck, intoxicated and upset, falls onto the subway tracks. Joe rescues her just before a train arrives. They share a moment, and Beck vomits on Joe. He accompanies her home, and she gives him her email address. Unbeknownst to her, Joe has stolen her phone.

Using the information from Beck’s phone, Joe contacts her boyfriend, Benji, under the guise of a food critic interested in Benji’s artisanal soda. Joe lures Benji to the bookstore’s basement, where he knocks him unconscious and locks him in a glass cage. Later, Joe visits Benji, who is still alive and imprisoned.

The episode concludes with Beck returning to the bookstore, apologizing for her previous behavior, and expressing interest in going out for a drink with Joe.

Cast

Main Cast

• Penn Badgley as Joe Goldberg
• Elizabeth Lail as Guinevere Beck
• Luca Padovan as Paco
• Zach Cherry as Ethan Russell
• Nicole Kang as Lynn Lieser
• Kathryn Gallagher as Annika Attwater
• Shay Mitchell as Peach Salinger

Trivia

• The episode originally premiered on Lifetime on September 9, 2018, before the series was acquired by Netflix.
• The pilot is based on the novel You by Caroline Kepnes, published in 2014.
• Penn Badgley, who plays Joe Goldberg, previously starred in Gossip Girl, another show centered around voyeurism and secret lives.
• The episode was directed by Lee Toland Krieger, known for directing episodes of Riverdale and Deadly Class.
• Elizabeth Lail, who plays Guinevere Beck, was cast shortly after her breakout role on Once Upon a Time.
• The bookstore Joe works at, Mooney’s, is a fictional shop but was filmed in a real New York City location dressed for the show.
• The character Paco, Joe’s young neighbor, does not exist in the original book and was created for the TV adaptation to humanize Joe.
• Joe’s narration throughout the episode—and the series—is lifted heavily from the first-person perspective used in the book.
• The glass cage in the bookstore basement is modeled after a real archival preservation unit used for rare books.
• Beck’s fall onto the subway tracks is a dramatic addition that was not in the original novel and was added to heighten tension and create a “hero” moment for Joe.
• The producers used Beck’s social media presence as a plot device to comment on digital privacy and oversharing.
• Benji, Beck’s boyfriend, represents a composite of toxic masculinity and privilege and was expanded upon from a smaller role in the novel.

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