Here’s What The Heartstopper Characters Look Like In The Netflix Series Vs. The Graphic Novels

Fans have praised the similar look of the series cast to their graphic novel counterparts…

By Christopher Turner

Ever since Netflix announced that it would be bringing Alice Oseman’s Heartstopper to life, fans of the series have been itching to see it. The eight-episode series, based on Oseman’s Tumblr web-comic-turned-graphic-novel, started streaming in 30-minute instalments on April 22 – and the praise has been rolling in ever since. (It’s also one of the few series to score the coveted and incredibly rare 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics universally praising the show.)

Heartstopper started out as a webcomic in 2016, before being turned into a YA graphic novel in 2018. There are currently four volumes out; a fifth and final instalment is due in the coming months. The show, which has been adapted from the first two volumes in the series, follows the blossoming romance between Charlie Spring (Joe Locke), who feels isolated from his classmates at an all-boys school in England because he is gay, and Nick Nelson (Kit Connor), a star player on the school’s rugby team. The two fall for each other after they end up sitting next to each other at school.

Much to fans’ delight, the Netflix series has stayed fairly true to the original comic, especially with the cast’s likeness to their graphic novel counterparts. The production team auditioned over 10,000 people for the show to ensure that the cast all looked and felt like the characters that they would be portraying. That means the Netflix series is packed with future stars making their professional screen debut… In fact, only Kit Connor (Nick) and Sebastian Croft (Ben) have previous credits.

In celebration of all things Heartstopper (because we just can’t get enough), here’s a look at the most beloved characters: what they look like in the Netflix series and what they look like in the graphic novels.

Charlie Spring
Played by: Joe Locke