Aahana Swrup
Netflix’s ‘Caught’ is a Spanish crime mystery show in which the case of a missing teenage girl in the town of Bariloche unravels in unexpected ways. Ema Garay is a celebrated journalist who undertakes an investigation into an online groomer who has been recently targeting local teenage girls. Eventually, she finds herself singling out an unpredictable suspect, Leo Mercer, who runs a helpful foundation for young kids. As a result, the fortuitous discovery sends Leo and Ema’s lives into a frenzy—especially when clues begin to surface that point toward a much greater conspiracy at play.
Originally known as ‘Atrapados,’ the show has roots in the crime/investigative journalism genre, which inevitably paves the way for several storylines that mirror a menacing truth about reality. From the depiction of the concerning rise in online grooming to the pitfalls of corrupt manipulation of the system, Ema’s narrative sheds an authentic light on prevalent topics. Therefore, the origins behind these plot points remain worth exploring.
Caught Adapts a Harlan Coben Novel in an Argentine Setting
‘Caught’ is another addition to Netflix’s accumulated collection of adaptations of mystery novelist Harlan Coben’s work. The show, helmed by director and showrunner Miguel Cohan, is based on the author’s 2010 novel ‘Caught,’ which follows the tale of a reporter’s investigation into the case of a missing teenage girl. However, Coben’s story retains some foundational differences from its on-screen counterpart. The most notable of these differences emerges from the divergence in geographical and time period settings. In the book, the story unfolds in New Jersey, where characters like reporter Wendy Tynes and the unfortunate leading suspect, Dan Mercer, populate the narrative.
However, the show approaches the story through a different lens. Cohan’s adaptation is set in an Argentine backdrop in the city of San Carlos de Bariloche. Furthermore, although the book itself is a contemporary work to 2010, the on-screen adaptation brings the story a decade and a half into the future, resulting in some structural divergences. Even though these variations partially depart the show from its source material, they increase its authentic connections to the modern world. Likewise, the Argentine setting contributes to the crime-thriller themes, offering a new perspective. Author Coben remained impressed with this new approach, praising the book-to-screen variance in a conversation with Variety.
“(The city of) Bariloche is a fantastic location (for ‘Caught), offering both stunning beauty and a sense of isolation that makes it perfect for a thriller,” said Coben. The author further added, “Bariloche captures the same spirit and emotions evoked by the novel, even if the setting isn’t an exact match. It organically becomes its own universe – a small city that isn’t quite a town but not a metropolis either. It’s the kind of place where everyone seems to know each other, yet strangers still cross paths without truly meeting.” Therefore, even though he remained uninvolved with the show’s development, allowing Cohan and his team to take over full creative control over the reigns, the adaptation evidently earned his approval.
Caught Highlights the Troubling Rise of Online Grooming Crimes
One of the key themes underlined in ‘Caught’ due to its 2024 setting remains the focus on the prevalence of online grooming. The story takes off with Ema Garay investigating the case of a suspected groomer who uses online platforms to lure in young girls. This aspect of the story remains crucial to the narrative and leads to the ultimate mystery. On top of contributing to the mysterious criminal intrigue in the show, the storyline also adds a layer of realism to the tale. In real life, cases of online grooming have reached newer heights since 2020. Reportedly, there has been a rise in online grooming crimes against children by 82%.
The reality of these crimes can look like an establishment of connection through chatting, which would then lead to demands for personal information, explicit images, or arranged meet-ups. As such, the show’s depiction of this crime, through the narrative of Martina Schulz and her friends, remains reflective of reality. Furthermore, the employment of sting operations—either by authorities or citizens—in order to apprehend child abusers also remains in line with reality. In 2016, a group of vigilantes successfully pulled off an operation via a Facebook page that led to the conviction of four pedophiles.
Similarly, in 2023, another online group aided in the arrest of Andrew Hughes, a then-57-year-old-veteran who was trying to have a sexual encounter with a fabricated 14-year-old girl. He was ultimately sentenced to 14 months in prison with a two-year suspension. Therefore, the show modernizes Harlan Coben’s original work’s themes while also establishing firm ties with real life. Thus, even though the on-screen storylines aren’t rooted in an off-screen criminal case, they retain a sense of realism.
Ema Garay is a Fictional Journalist With No Roots in Reality
Since ‘Caught’ sports fictional roots in Harlan Coben’s eponymous crime mystery novel, the show’s protagonist similarly ends up remaining a work of fiction. Her bookish counterpart, Wendy Tynes, remains confined to the author’s literary work and possesses no direct counterparts in reality. Therefore, Wendy is the closest originator for Ema and her on-screen narrative. The latter’s storyline on the show falls in line with Wendy’s tale in Coben’s novel, juggling complicated dynamics as an investigative journalist and a mother. However, Ema departs from her literary counterpart in one prominent way through her reliance on social media in her line of work.
While this sets Ema apart from Wendy and her methods, it also becomes a perfectly modernized version of the latter as a TV reporter. Nonetheless, outside of her connection to the protagonist in Coben’s novel, the character retains no other significant counterparts. Interestingly enough, while the author had little to no involvement in the adaptation of his character’s on-screen counterpart, he did have a say in the casting choice. As per reports, Coben was eager for actress Soledad Villamil to play the role of Ema from the beginning. Thus, the actress brings a certain gravity to her character, which informs the realistic and authentic approach to the central storyline.
Read More: Where Was Netflix’s Caught Filmed?
