Skam France (also called Skam Belgique; often stylized as SKAM) is a French-Belgian teen drama television series broadcast by France.tv Slash that follows the lives of teenagers in Paris. It is a French adaptation of the popular Norwegian series SKAM.

Concept
SKAM France is based on the Norwegian series SKAM, created by Julie Andem, which follows the daily life of high school students and the problems that they face. The plot of each season focuses around a different central character and particular themes. Each adaptation of the original series follows a similar storyline. The series is aired via short clips published on the Internet in real-time which are compiled to form a longer episode at the end of each week. Characters also have in-universe Instagram accounts where text conversations are published.

Premise

First Generation

Seasons 1–5 focused on the "first generation" of students at Lycée Dorian or Dorian High School in Paris, composed of characters based on the original Norwegian series. The first season introduces Emma Borgés, who starts her first year of high school after losing her friends Ingrid and Sarah the year before. With her new friends Manon, Daphné, Imane and Alexia, known as "The Crew," she attempts to organize the biggest party ever thrown by first years. However, she also struggles to trust her boyfriend, Yann, who used to date Ingrid, and tries to rediscover herself and redefine her relationship and friendships.

Season 2 focused on Emma's new best friend, Manon Demissy, who is considered to be more mature than the others in their friend group, however, the stormy relationship she has with Charles, the most popular guy at school puts Manon at odds with her feminist values, and her newfound friendship with the girls, most specifically Daphné, who harbors a crush on Charles.

The third season shifted focus to Yann's friend group, "The Gang." The season centers on his best friend, Lucas Lallemant, who struggles with coming out to Yann, Arthur and Basile after falling in love with new student, Eliott. Other plots included Eliott's struggles with bipolar disorder, and Lucas helping Daphné and the girls renovate the school's common room.

Season 4 then shifted back to Emma and Manon's friend group, focusing on their friend, Imane Bakhellal, a Black Muslim teenager searching for her own autonomy and her identity while living up to the expectations of her family, friends, and what she believes to be a "good Muslim." This is complicated when she begins to fall for her brother's best friend, Sofiane, who is non-Muslim. 

Season 5 was the first season to continue past the original Skam storylines, centering again on Yann and Lucas' friend group and the character of Arthur Broussard, who gradually begins losing his hearing, and must begin to figure out how to navigate the worlds of both hearing and non-hearing people. He also struggles to define his romantic relationships with Alexia and Noée, a girl he meets through an association that assists Deaf people in Paris. He also questions his future with the end of high school for him and his friends fast approaching.

Second Generation

Season 6–10 focused on a new class of students at Dorian High School, but did occasionally feature appearances from the cast of earlier seasons, most prominently in season six, which focused on Daphné's younger sister, Lola Lecomte. Daphné and her sister aren't close, particularly since Lola struggles with alcohol and substance abuse. After Lola returns home from another stint in rehab, the siblings must contend with the death of their mother, Lola's revelation that she and Daphné do not share the same father, and Daphné's eating disorder. With support from The Gang, The Crew, and Lola's new friends, "La Mif," which consists of Jo, Max, Sekou, and her love interest, Maya, the two sisters work to come back together again.

Season 7 focuses on Tiffany Prigent, a popular girl returning to school after a traumatic pregnancy denial, where she ended up giving birth at a gymnastics meet. Tiffany, having bullied Lola in the previous season, finds herself becoming closer to Lola and her friends, becoming close to Jo and forming a newfound romantic interest in Max. These new friendships threaten her other ones with Anaïs and Louise, other popular girls who used to consider themselves "The Trio." Tiffany also has to learn how to co-parent with her former fling, Aurélien.

Season 8 centers around Bilal Cherif, a new member of La Mif after Sekou moved away between seasons 6 and 7. He struggles with homelessness and food insecurity after his mother loses her job as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Bilal also has to contend with his romantic interest in Jo, and her HIV positive diagnosis throughout the season, requiring both of them to learn how to ask for support from their friend group.

The ninth season returns to storylines that originated in the sixth season. Maya Etienne is the central character, and her season deals with the fallout of her breakup with Lola, which brings up feelings of depression and heartbreak she hadn't fully dealt with since the death of her parents years ago. As a result, Maya reaches out to the grandmother she barely knows, and attempts to again bury her feelings through her activism work.

The tenth season revolves around Anaïs Rocha, Tiffany's former best friend. After she is raped by her boyfriend, she finds herself reaching out to La Mif, specifically Lola, Maya, Tiffany, Jo, and Redouane, as well as new friends Sasha and Frida, for support in confronting what has happened to her and how to move past it. Along the way, Anaïs discovers feminist causes, and how that can help her in her goals.

Third Generation
Seasons 11–12 again shifted focus to a new, younger class of students at Dorian High School. Characters from the previous generation make cameo appearances in season 11, which focuses on the character of Rym Brahimi, a girl who transfers late in the year following a court decision which places her in the French foster system. While attempting to contend with her anger issues, delinquency, the death of her grandmother, and her own distant mother, Rym forms new friendships with "The Weirdos." The Weirdos consist of the headmistress's son, Yanis Toussaint, quirky Jade Miller, and non-binary teen Cléo, who quickly becomes Rym's love interest.

Season 12 shifts to another friend group dubbed "The Clones" by Cléo, as they often dress in the same trendy clothing, think highly of their social standing, and bully others who exist outside of their norm. Maël Le Gall, a member of their group, struggles to live up to his friends' expectations when he and his girlfriend, Léonie, attempt to have sex for the first time. When Maël struggles to perform, he is quickly ostracized by his friends, and finds solace with "The Weirdos." He reforms his friendship with Cléo, and also finds himself drawn to Jade, who helps him accept that he identifies with asexuality.

Cast and characters

Central characters

Main characters

Recurring and guest characters

Episodes

Series overview

Season 1
Season 1 aired from 9 February to 6 April 2018 and comprised 9 episodes. Emma Borgès is the central character and the season focuses on her relationship with her boyfriend Yann, as well as themes of cyberbullying and friendship.

Season 2
Season 2 aired from 13 April to 22 June 2018 and comprised 13 episodes. Manon Demissy is the central character and the season focuses on her relationship with Charles, a popular boy at school, and themes of sexual abuse.

Season 3
Season 3 aired from 25 January to 29 March 2019 and comprised 10 episodes. Lucas Lallemant is the central character, and the season deals with his homosexuality, coming out, and his relationship with Eliott, who is later revealed to be suffering from bipolar disorder, another major theme of the season.

Season 4
Season 4 aired from 5 April to 4 June 2019 and comprised 10 episodes. It centers around Imane Bakhellal and themes of faith and racism. It was reported that Assa Sylla, who played Imane, was the first black Muslim woman to lead a French television series.

Season 5
Season 5 aired from 10 January to 6 March 2020 and comprised 10 episodes. Arthur Broussard is the main character and the series deals with themes of deafness, invisible disability and ableism.

Season 6
Season 6 aired from 24 April to 26 June 2020 and comprised 10 episodes. It centers around Lola Lecomte, Daphné's younger sister, and her struggles with addiction and self-destructive behavior. This season is the first of the second generation, as the focus shifts on younger students at Dorian High School.

Season 7 
Season 7 began on 22 January 2021 and ended on 19 March 2021. Tiffany Prigent is the central character and the season deals with issues of teen pregnancy, as well as pregnancy denial.

Season 8
Season 8 began on 7 May 2021 and ended on 9 July 2021. The central character is Bilal Cherif, who struggles with issues of homelessness and food insecurity, while juggling a relationship with Jo Benezra, who has just been diagnosed with HIV.

Season 9
Season 9 aired from 14 January 2022 to 18 March 2022, centering around Maya Etienne. Maya and her long-time girlfriend, Lola, break up, causing Maya to reevaluate her life and confront feelings she has buried since the death of her parents when she was young.

Season 10
On 19 March 2022, it was confirmed that season 10 will be centered around Anaïs Rocha and the themes of rape and feminism. The season began airing on 13 May 2022 and finished airing on 2 July 2022.

Season 11 
It was confirmed on 23 February 2023 that Skam France would be returning for an eleventh season, again shifting focus to other students at Dorian High School. The central character is Rym Brahimi, a new student who transfers in the middle of the year, and the topics of her season focus on the French foster system, deliquency, and what it means to belong. The season began airing on 10 March 2023, completing its run on 5 May 2023.

Season 12 
It was confirmed on 23 February 2023 that Skam France would be returning for a twelfth season, alongside the eleventh season's announcement. The central character will be Maël Le Gall, another student at Dorian High School, and the topics of his season will focus on asexuality and teenage first love, confirmed by France.tvslash on 5 May 2023. The first clip of his season subsequently released on 7 May 2023. It was confirmed in an interview with cast and crew that season 12 would be the last broadcast by France Télévisions and its affiliates. The series finale aired on 7 July 2023.

Special

A week after the final episode of Skam France aired, France.tvslash released a retrospective looking back on the making and production of seasons 11 and 12. This also showcased cast and crew speaking about how the show has touched them and the audiences the show had reached worldwide.

References

2010s French drama television series
2020s French drama television series
2010s Belgian television series
2020s Belgian television series
2010s LGBT-related drama television series
2010s teen drama television series
2020s teen drama television series
2018 French television series debuts
2018 Belgian television series debuts
Television series about Islam
Television series about teenagers
French-language television shows
Television shows set in Paris
Television shows about disability
Teenage pregnancy in television
La Trois original programming