You: Every Major Change From The Joe Goldberg Books

Although Netflix’s You initially stuck close to its source material, later seasons have heralded major change from the original Joe Goldberg books. Author Caroline Kepnes’ anthology of obsession consists of three books to date: “You,” “Hidden Bodies,” and the more recently released “You Love Me.” All three You editions center around the covetous Joe Goldberg, whose fleeting obsessions more often than not turn murderous as he attempts to evade detection and capture as a prolific serial killer.

In both Netflix’s and Caroline Kepnes’ versions of the twist-filled You story, Joe Goldberg is a charming character who commits reprehensible acts that are often in direct conflict with his affable nature. Netflix’s You, in particular, has attempted to lesson Joe’s appeal over the course of its three seasons as his character’s neuroses begin to outweigh the undeniable charisma of lead actor Penn Badgley. Caroline Kepnes’ You novels also follow a similar trend regarding its protagonist’s likability, with “You Love Me” in particular making the reader privy to every monstrous thought that pops into Joe’s head.

Yet despite both versions of You aligning on their portrayal of Joe Goldberg, Netflix’s You otherwise contains some radical deviations from Caroline Kepnes’ source material. The Netflix series has added many new characters, settings, and plots designed to keep even the most ardent You fans’ attention. Here’s every major change Netflix’s You series made from the Joe Goldberg books.

Season 3’s Setting And Characters

The idyllic suburb of Madre Linda that drives Joe and Love Quinn (Victoria Pedretti) slowly insane marks a radical narrative change from Caroline Kepnes’ third book. “You Love Me” aims to continue Joe and Love’s Los Angeles story, with Joe eventually fleeing to Bainbridge Island in Washington State after burning his bridges with the Quinn family. Season 3 of You clearly had other ideas; however, with their suburban nightmare narrative a completely fresh idea from the Netflix series. The ramifications of Netflix creating a brand new setting mean that in the You books, Madre Linda, Love’s new bakery, Sherry and Cary, et al. simply do not exist. The third book in the You series instead introduces several divergent characters of its own, with the prime example being Joe’s new love interest Mary Kay, who becomes the catalyst for his latest murderous rampage in the Pacific Northwest.

Joe And Love’s Final Confrontation

While Netflix’s You season 3 went completely off-script by introducing the location of Madre Linda, the series does still utilize a similar, climactic ending to Caroline Kepnes’ third book, which ends with Love and Joe locked in a deathly battle of wills. However, this is where the similarities end with Joe’s clever utilization of both adrenaline and aconite in the You season 3 finale, another fabricated plotline from the Netflix series. The alternate end of “You Love Me” sees Love lure Joe back to Los Angeles under the premise of seeing his son Henry, but when he arrives at the hotel meeting point, his child is nowhere to be seen. Instead, Love ambushes Joe with a gun, begging him to say he loves her. When Joe refuses, Love pulls the trigger, shooting Joe in the head before turning the weapon on herself. Miraculously, Joe survives this ordeal, but Love’s final death in the books ends up looking radically different and more brutal than at the end of You season 3.

Paco And Ellie Don’t Exist

While his own narcissism almost completely dwarfs Joe’s paternal instincts by the end of You season 3, the prior two Netflix seasons see Joe attentively protecting and nurturing two young characters. You season 1 has Paco (Luca Padovan), Joe’s next-door neighbor, who he saves from an abusive home, while season 2 often centers around Ellie (Jenna Ortega), Delilah’s (Carmela Zumbado) rebellious 16-year-old daughter. Even while Joe struggles to care for his own son in You season 3, he is still shown sending money to an off-screen Ellie by stealing and selling rare books from the Madre Linda library. Yet despite both these young characters’ significance in the You series, neither exist in the books, with Caroline Kepnes’ story instead focussing more heavily on Joe’s obsessive nature and, by extension, toning down the antiheroic portrait of Joe that the aiding of these children paints.

Candace Doesn’t Come Back

One of the biggest cliffhangers handed out by You season 1 was the return of Candace following the mystery surrounding her disappearance. In the new hit Netflix series, Candace represents one of Joe’s biggest blunders after his attempted murder and burial of Candace does not take, forcing Joe to change his name and flee to LA. Candace’s pursuit and climactic conflict with Joe formed the backbone of the tension that pervades You season 2, but as with many key narratives in Netflix’s You, this storyline does not exist in the books. Instead, Caroline Kepnes’ You keeps Candace’s story much more streamlined, with Candace’s death very final as Joe matter-of-factly explains to Peach that he killed her after she broke up with him.

Forty’s Character And Death

The Forty Quinn (James Scully) portrayed in You season 2 is a far cry indeed from the charismatic character that appears in Kepnes’ second book’s story “Hidden Bodies.” You season 2’s Forty is an on-the-wagon, off-the-wagon mess of a character whose addiction and personal shortcomings end up poisoning the majority of the characters around him. While James Scully’s performance is compelling and paints Forty as a sympathetic yet tragic figure, his portrayal is radically different from the You books. Caroline Kepnes’ Forty is far more successful, with his screenplays being picked up and made into acclaimed motion pictures. Forty roping Joe into helping him write in You season 2 is inverted in “Hidden Bodies,” with Forty instead offering to include Joe in his projects to help him financially.

Yet perhaps the most overt change of all is Forty’s death, which has very little to do with the coda of the “Hidden Bodies” plot. In You season 2, Forty prepares to kill Joe when he is shot in the head by officer Fincher, marking the end of Love and Joe’s Los Angeles-based narrative. In “Hidden Bodies,” however, Joe tries to drown an overdosing Forty in his hotel bathtub but leaves before making sure that Forty is actually dead. While Forty survives, and in turn forces Joe to write scripts for him as blackmail, he is later hit by a drunk driver and killed in an ironic but unrelated twist at the end of the novel that could not be further from the penultimate scene of You season 2.

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