Why are women so obsessed with ‘bad boys’ like Joe from Netflix’s You? It’s time we changed the narrative

Presenter and comedian Cassandra Maria explains why our fascination with “bad boys” is just more proof that we need Jesus. 

The concept of a “bad boy” is familiar to all of us; a man who is smooth, potentially smokes and would probably kidnap your nan if the price was right. Despite the clear red flags, women have long been attracted to bad boys. In school, when I was in year four, I had a crush on the most disruptive boy class because of his cheeky nature and his dimples. The phenomenon gets most of us at one time or another. At the top end of the bad boy romance spectrum, are the women who write to convicted criminals after their mugshots go viral offering to carry their babies within 3.5 working days. The fact that he may have burned a house down or be a murderer doesn’t seem to matter because his eyes sparkle in the sun.

TV shows have capitalised on this phenomenon by releasing content that speaks to this yearning, for example, the entire Ted Bundy series that shows a real-life killer’s journey and how he managed to lure women in with his looks. And more recently, the hit Netflix show You has been the talk of the town. It depicts the gorgeous, charming bookworm Joe endlessly causing havoc by meticulously stalking and then killing the women who catch his eye. It’s not just women, mind you, Joe extends his murderous hands to men who get caught up in his madness too, leaving families without sons, uncles and brothers.