In Jack Thorne’s intense Netflix adaptation of William Golding’s Lord of the Flies, the goal was not to reinvent the novel, but to stay true to its spirit. Thorne, the Emmy-winning writer behind Adolescence, says the production’s main priority was respecting what Golding had written. Still, that did not mean copying the book scene for scene.
The series is structured across four episodes, with each installment centered on a different boy stranded on the island. That approach allows the story to explore how fear, power and survival change each character from the inside out.
One key scene in the third episode focuses on Jack, played by Lox Pratt, and Simon, played by Ike Talbut. Away from the rest of the group, the two boys have a quieter, more revealing exchange. Jack tells Simon about a story his father often repeats — a difficult 10-day hike from his youth that supposedly shaped him into a man. Jack seems to view their situation on the island in a similar way, as a test of strength and character.
Thorne says the moment matters because it is one of the first times viewers see Jack and Simon speak honestly without the pressure of the other boys watching. Their conversation exposes sides of both characters that are usually hidden in the group dynamic.
Simon, who is normally more reserved, pushes back against Jack in a way the audience has not seen before. For Thorne, that was essential. He connected deeply with Simon, describing him as the kind of outsider child who struggles to understand how friendship is supposed to work. At the same time, Thorne says this sharper version of Simon is still rooted in Golding’s novel, where the character occasionally shows a tougher edge.
The scene also connects both boys through their relationships with their fathers. Jack has absorbed one kind of lesson from his father: endure, prove yourself, do not fail. Simon carries a different emotional truth from his own experience. When Jack tries to frame the island as a trial he can conquer, Simon quietly punctures that confidence.
The conversation gradually moves from Jack’s proud story about his father to a much harsher realization: no one is coming to save them. Thorne says the scene had to arrive at that point. Simon understands both his own pain and Jack’s because they share a history of being disappointed by their fathers. His message is devastatingly simple: whatever Jack tells the others, both boys know what abandonment feels like — and this time, their fathers will not appear to rescue them.
