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SELENA GOMEZ I think he understood that I knew what it meant to be bullied. I went to the biggest high school in the world, which is the Disney Channel. And my mom had a lot of history dealing with [bullying]. I heard her stories growing up. She's very open about it.

MANDY TEEFEY When I was growing up, I was always bullied because I was the outsider, the weird girl with the purple hair and combat boots. Then I was a teen mom. You get really judged. I had counselors telling me how I'd ruined my life, [Selena's] life and how I ruined the father's life, even though he participated.
Selena, once "Thirteen Reasons" went from being a feature to a series, did you mind taking a behind-the-scenes role?
GOMEZ The older I got - once I left my series, once I started to go for roles that weren't that age range - it organically began to become a project that I knew I would be behind the scenes with. I actually like that I'm not in it. To be honest, this book has such a huge following. I wanted it to be credible. If I'm a part of it, that's going to cause a whole other conversation.
Meaning that you'd be a distraction?
GOMEZ Yeah. And I knew that.

BRIAN YORKEY It's also kind of perfect because you have this huge fan base. That's what I kept thinking about, Selena will say, "Hey, check out what I've been working on because it's really important to me," and [her fans] will check it out. This is a show that they need. We all believe it will save lives - because the book has.
Selena, has social media changed since you've been in the public eye?
GOMEZ When I was on "Wizards of Waverly Place," we didn't have social media really. Twitter had just begun. Every Friday, I'd get to do a live taping in front of all these little kids and make their life. That's when I was the happiest. Then, as I got older, I watched it go from zero to a hundred. So I'm actually glad it took us this long to create this project because it's so relevant now.
Do you read the comments on your 114 million-strong Instagram feed?
GOMEZ You can't avoid it sometimes. I delete the app from my phone at least once a week. [brittle laugh] You fixate on the [negative] ones. They're not like, 'You're ugly.' It's like they want to cut to your soul. Imagine all the insecurities that you already feel about yourself and having someone write a paragraph pointing out every little thing - even if it's just physical.
Is the book better suited to be episodic than told in one film?
TEEFEY One of the reasons it didn't work as a feature was that there wasn't enough time to tell the stories of the other characters and why they were making the decisions they were making. [Brian] was able to make them three-dimensional so that, at some point, you felt badly for them, too. That's why the feature [script] didn't work. Hannah just seemed mean.

YORKEY The book takes place in one night and spends most of the time telling the story of Hannah in the past. So we expanded the present-day story. Part of it was figuring out the best way to be very faithful to the book but at the same time to reinvent it as television.
What conversations did you have about the tone?
YORKEY We talked a lot about "True Detective," "Mad Men," about "Breaking Bad." Not that "Thirteen Reasons" is anything like those shows. But they're very adult shows that tons of kids are watching. ["Thirteen Reasons"] is not just for kids - it's for everybody, we hope. First and foremost, it was about taking kids seriously.

TEEFEY Kids are smarter than you think.

YORKEY They're sophisticated television viewers. They're so savvy about story and conflicting motives and the way things happen in their lives. It's like, "Let's try not to condescend."

Mandy, how early did Selena show that savviness?
TEEFEY She was 6 or 7. I thought I wanted to be an actor. She went to one of my rehearsals with me and sat through the whole thing, not moving. On the way home, she was quiet, and then she goes, "You know, Mom, that might be funnier if you did it this way." And I thought, Oh, no. She's going to be an actor. I'm surprised she actually had friends. She used to make the kids in the neighborhood do casting calls and try to direct them.

GOMEZ You can hear my voice in the background [on the home movies]. I'm like, "Move to the left." "Say it again."
Where in the world did you find Katherine Langford?
YORKEY She's from Perth, Australia. We did a global search, and she recorded a tape. A lot of fantastic kids read for us, but nobody was Hannah. Then we saw Katherine. And we thought: Really? Can we cast Hannah off a self-tape from Perth, Australia? So Tom McCarthy [the director] did a Skype work session with her, and when he came out of the session he said, "I think she's the one."

TEEFEY Our actors are insane. I feel like we acquired the casting of "Freaks and Geeks." Or "My So-Called Life." Like, there'll be a reunion photo [in the future], and everybody [will be famous].

YORKEY But should that happen, we would not mind having more seasons than "Freaks and Geeks" and "My So-Called Life" [which each lasted one season], with much love to both of those shows, which are huge parts of why we're here.
Selena, four years ago "Spring Breakers" allowed you to graduate to more mature roles. Is executive producer another leap?
GOMEZ I could do any tomboy/teen princess movie in the world if I wanted to. I could do those for years. But I want to be a part of projects that have value, that really matter. And it's really hard to do that. Sometimes I feel defeated. I'll audition for a part that I feel very passionate about, meet with people, tell them I'm willing to go places. I think they think I won't go there. To be honest, I don't think it's going to happen anytime soon for me. I think I look really young and image-wise, it's difficult for people to grasp. But early on, my mom taught me that sometimes you just have to create those projects for yourself. That's what I want this to be: a launching pad.

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Selena Gomez (and Others) on Adapting 'Thirteen Reasons Why' for Netflix

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SELENA GOMEZ I think he understood that I knew what it meant to be bullied. I went to the biggest high school in the world, which is the Disney Channel. And my mom had a lot of history dealing with [bullying]. I heard her stories growing up. She's very open about it.

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Every suicide is a tragedy, and to some degree a mystery. Suicide often stems from a deep feeling of hopelessness. The inability to see solutions to problems or to cope with challenging life circumstances may lead people to see taking their own lives as the only solution to what is really a temporary situation, and most survivors of suicide attempts go on to live full, rewarding lives.

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SAVE | Suicide Prevention | Suicide Information | Suicide Awareness

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The mission of SAVE is to prevent suicide through public awareness and education, reduce stigma and serve as a resource to those touched by suicide.

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American Foundation for Suicide Prevention

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Are you in a crisis? Call 800-273-8255 or text TALK to 741741.

Learn the latest statistics on suicide. Data on suicide are taken from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Data & Statistics Fatal Injury Report for 2018, as of March 1, 2020. Suicide rates listed are Age-Adjusted Rates.

Suicide is the

10th

leading cause of death in the US

In 2018,

48,344

Americans died by suicide

In 2018, there were an estimated

1.4M

suicide attempts

In 2015, suicide and self-injury cost the US

$69B

Become an advocate to help prevent suicide Learn more

Additional facts about suicide in the US

The age-adjusted suicide rate in 2018 was 14.2 per 100,000 individuals.

The rate of suicide is highest in middle-aged white men.

In 2018, men died by suicide 3.56x more often than women.

On average, there are 132 suicides per day.

White males accounted for 69.67% of suicide deaths in 2018.

In 2018, firearms accounted for 50.57% of all suicide deaths.

More resources

Suicide research videos

Short and easy-to-understand, these new research-themed videos make suicide prevention research accessible, and are perfect for sharing on social media, helping to spread the word that through research, we can #StopSuicide.
Learn more about research

Suicide Rates in the United States

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 Years 11.8 12 12.2 12.4 12.6 12.8 13 13.2 13.4 13.6 13.8 14 14.2 Rate per 100,000 Individuals

Suicide rates by race/ethnicity

Suicide methods

Suicide rates by age

Suicide rates by race/ethnicity

Suicide methods

In 2018, the suicide rates were higher among adults ages 45 to 54 years (20.04 per 100,000) and 55 to 64 years (20.20 per 100,000), with the rate highest among adults ages 52 to 59 years (21.56 per 100,000). Younger groups have had consistently lower suicide rates than middle-aged and older adults. In 2018, adolescents and young adults aged 15 to 24 had a suicide rate of 14.45.

Suicide rates by age

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 Years 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 Rate per 100,000 Individuals

Public policy priorities

Learn more about our top Federal and State policy priorities for suicide prevention.
Learn more

Suicide attempts

When it comes to suicide and suicide attempts there are rate differences depending on demographic characteristics such as age, gender, ethnicity and race. Nonetheless, suicide occurs in all demographic groups.

In the U.S., no complete count of suicide attempt data are available. The CDC gathers data from hospitals on non-fatal injuries from self-harm as well as survey data.

In 2015, (the most recent year for which data are available), approximately 575,000 people visited a hospital for injuries due to self-harm.

Based on the 2018 National Survey of Drug Use and Mental Health it is estimated that 0.5 percent of the adults aged 18 or older made at least one suicide attempt. This translates to approximately 1.4 million adults. Adult females reported a suicide attempt 1.5 times as often as males. Further breakdown by gender and race are not available.

Based on the most recent Youth Risk Behaviors Survey from 2017, 7.4 percent of youth in grades 9-12 reported that they had made at least one suicide attempt in the past 12 months. Female students attempted almost twice as often as male students (9.3% vs. 5.1%). Black students reported the highest rate of attempt (9.8%) with white students at 6.1 percent. Approximately 2.4 percent of all students reported making a suicide attempt that required treatment by a doctor or nurse. For those requiring treatment, rates were highest for Black students (3.4%).

About AFSP

Learn about the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, and our mission to save lives and bring hope to those affected by suicide.
Learn more

Become an advocate for suicide prevention

By signing up as an AFSP Field Advocate, you will become a vital part of a large grassroots movement of people across the U.S. who are speaking out for suicide prevention and mental health policies at all levels of government.
Learn more

Boards, commitees and councils

The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention's National Board, Councils and Committees are dedicated to the fight to stop suicide.
Learn more

Action Center

Visit our Action Center to stay up to date on the federal and state bills that need your support.
Take action

Sign up for email alerts

Receive updates from the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention

© 2020 American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. All rights reserved.

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Are you in a crisis? Call 800-273-8255 or text TALK to 741741. Learn the latest statistics on suicide. Data on suicide are taken from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Data & Statistics Fatal Injury Report for 2018, as of March 1, 2020. Suicide rates listed are Age-Adjusted Rates.

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If you think that a friend or loved one might be suicidal, you need to take action. Always take suicidal threats seriously.

Signs that a person is at risk of committing suicide include:

Withdrawal from friends and family

Talking a lot about death or suicide

Trying to get access to pills, firearms, or other possible means of suicide

Giving away belongings or saying goodbye

If you think your friend is at risk, here's what you can do.

1. Talk to Your Friend

Ask your friend if he or she is thinking about suicide. Be direct. Contrary to what you might assume, you can't make someone suicidal by asking about it.

Try to stay supportive and not judgmental.

Ask your friend if he or she has a specific plan in mind. When people have settled on a specific means of committing suicide, they're at higher risk.

2. Get Help

If you think your friend is in danger, stay with him or her if you can. Don't leave a suicidal person alone.

Call 911, take the person to an emergency room, or contact a crisis hotline like 1-800-SUICIDE (1-800-784-2433) or 1-800-273-TALK (1-800-273-8255).

Get support from other friends and family members, even if your friend asks you not to. It's too serious to keep secret -- and you can't keep your friend safe all on your own.

If your friend has been seeing a mental health professional (therapist, counselor, psychologist, social worker, or psychiatrist), call them and make them aware of the situation.

Sources

SOURCES:

National Mental Health Information Center: "Suicide Warning Signs."

Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance: "Understanding Suicidal Thinking."

CDC: "Preventing Suicide."

Suicidal Thoughts Information from eMedicineHealth.

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If you think that a friend or loved one might be suicidal, you need to take action. Always take suicidal threats seriously. Signs that a person is at risk of committing suicide include: Withdrawal from friends and family Talking a lot about death or suicide Trying to get access to pills, firearms, or other possible means of suicide Giving away belongings or saying goodbye If you think your friend is at risk, here's what you can do.