The psychology behind hate-watching

Psychologists explain episodes of cute aggression in two ways: the first, linked to evolution, suggests that when we see something cute like a baby or a puppy, our brain produces high levels of oxytocin (also known as the love hormone), which pushes us to protect what is perceived as vulnerable by triggering aggression; the second suggests that when we see an adorable animal, we experience an overload of emotions, so our mind, to compensate for the imbalance, develops an aggressive response, leading us to say rather peculiar things like «I could bite your cheeks» when we see a baby. Our brain is strange; it makes us do or say things we wouldn't want to, behaving in a way that is completely opposite to our values or interests, responding to a primal instinct with a logic of its own. It's a bit like what happens when we find ourselves mesmerized by the disastrous consequences of a car accident, or when we check Instagram or X to see what celebrities we can't stand are up to. A similar phenomenon is happening around the figure of Blake Lively, the actress starring in the new movie It Ends With Us, who in recent days has been receiving a flood of online criticism, but just as much attention. According to her most dedicated haters, Lively is an unbearable and egocentric person, qualities confirmed both by her behavior during the press tour of her current new film and by old clips of her interviews, in which, according to the users who have recirculated them, «it's clear that her colleagues couldn't stand her». The large amount of criticism directed at Lively makes the less involved wonder how important it is to focus on public figures we don't respect. If she's not really a good person, why give her all this attention? The phenomenon of hate-following, or obsessively following everything a person we don't like publishes online, goes hand in hand with hate-watching, which means watching series and movies we despise, and both are related to how humans (fail to) manage strong emotions.

Before delving into how the chemistry of our brain induces us to spend hours of our precious time on characters, stories, celebrities - but also friendships and relationships - that we actually hate, the topic of hate-entertainment requires broader consideration. Years after the end of video rentals, television, and cinema as the only places to discover new movies and TV series, the internet has truly changed the way we consume content. Just think of platforms like TikTok: bombarded by videos lasting one or two minutes, we are spoiled for choice, so we let ourselves be swayed by the algorithm and its endless suggestions, getting lost in infinite tunnels like the fifty-part story times or the gloomy narrations of murders or other episodic dramas. It is said that social media are organized like a slot machine, with “scrolling” and “refreshing” mimicking the same top-to-bottom gesture used with gambling machines to evoke the same sense of reward that, over time, becomes addictive.

Even streaming platforms, which now host hundreds of options in their archives, leave us perpetually indecisive or, worse, defeated in front of a movie we didn’t really want to watch. Having too many choices is a wonderful thing, but when quantity outweighs quality, it risks making us lose our mental well-being. And so, content like Emily in Paris, the Netflix series that tells the story of an American in the French capital, and which, thanks to criticism, has now reached its fourth season, becomes fertile ground for hate-watching. By criticizing the outfits, the acting, the plot, and even the characters' personalities, the audience has transformed the show from a grossly failed attempt at a television cult into a commercial success fueled by the anger it provokes. And the companies behind the product don't care why it's being watched by millions of viewers, as Alissa Wilkinson writes for the New York Times, «technology companies recognize an unfortunate truth: incentivizing our worst impulses is much more profitable than exploiting the better ones. In this context-less void, an eye is an eye, whether the brain behind it is flooded with dopamine or adrenaline. A click is a click, whether you’re happy or angry.»

There are rather simple psychological explanations behind the public's love-hate relationship with Emily in Paris and now also with Blake Lively. The first is that finding "scapegoats" on which to unload all our resentment and anger is a fairly healthy way to release feelings that are socially considered negative, which we would otherwise express in a less convenient manner. According to recent research by the American Psychological Association, only by experiencing all the emotions in the motivational sphere (and at the right time) can we truly be happy - a sort of Yin and Yang of content: you need Titanic as much as 50 Shades of Grey, Breaking Bad and Fleabag as much as Emily in Paris and And Just Like That. Simultaneously, the success of the hate for famous series creates a sense of community, a sort of hater-dom - instead of fandom - dedicated to all those who post terrible reviews on social media, commenting on the unfortunate aesthetic sense of Emily. Lastly, and here we return to the theories that validate cute-aggression, love and hate are deeply intertwined. As psychotherapist Sally Baker explains to the Independent, «the brain, fundamentally, makes no distinctions. When we pay intense attention to a subject, the release of oxytocin, serotonin, and dopamine is triggered. The feel-good hormones are released when one is emotionally involved with someone, regardless of the motivation, and this gives rise to an intense emotional response». As the saying that has upheld the entire marketing and entertainment system for decades goes, “all press is good press,” whether receiving harsh criticism or deep admiration: the important thing is to stay connected.