People Are Rolling Their Eyes At Netflix For Turning A Real-Life Unethical Experiment Into A Reality Show...
by Benjamin Dzialdowski · BuzzFeedThe Stanford Prison Experiment, managed by Stanford psychology professor Philip Zimbardo, is one of the most notorious social experiments of the 20th century.
Professor Philip Zimbardo
The participants were recruited from the local community via adverts in newspapers that offered $15 per day to male college students. The advertisement was to be part of a 'psychological study of prison life'.
24 participants were accepted and randomly assigned to the role of prisoners or prison guards, with the 'goal' of exploring how people behave when given power or placed in powerless roles.
The experiment has been widely condemned on ethical and efficacy grounds. A number of the 'prisoners' developed extreme emotional disturbance, and the guards began behaving sadistically, humiliating the prisoners and actually harming them. Later, research into the study found that the guards were pushed toward cruelty, instead of becoming cruel spontaneously.
So, naturally, Netflix has decided to make it into an unscripted reality TV show.
The first season will consist of six 45-minute episodes, the official synopsis reads:
“Thirty willing participants enter a real prison and are randomly assigned as guards or prisoners. Thrust into a system of power, hierarchy, and control, they’ll discover whether ordinary people inevitably conform to the roles they’re given—or whether empathy, morality, and individuality can withstand the forces pushing them in the opposite direction. As the pressure builds and the balance of power begins to shift, the central question feels more urgent than ever: Does power corrupt?”
It's hard to tell how this show will work – obviously the participants will know exactly what's going on, as they're on a Netflix show, so the idea that it's an 'experiment' seems somewhat far-fetched. People are certainly dubious about what this 'reality' show will entail.
the stanford prison experiment being one of the most infamous examples of unethical psychological research and netflix deciding the obvious next step is to recreate it for entertainment… alright then https://t.co/1uzEHiwNGX
— diya (@watchwithdiya) September 15, 2026
diya / Via x.com
The original Stanford Prison Experiment took place in 1971. It was supposed to run for two weeks.
They stopped it after SIX days.
More than 50 years of controversy over how it was conducted and what it actually proved.
And now we're turning it into a Netflix reality show.
— POVcinema (@moviesPOV) September 15, 2026
POVcinema / Via x.com
No bc what do you mean Netflix is recreating the Stanford Prison Experiment pic.twitter.com/CG5OrFgMzs
— Katie✡︎ Adults s2 spoilers 💜✨ (@JewishSpeed) September 15, 2026
Katie✡︎ Adults s2 spoilers 💜✨ / Via x.com
the fact this tweet now applies to so many reality shows now
Squid Game, Willy Wonka, now…the Stanford Prison Experiment? What cautionary tale can be turned into a reality next? I can’t wait until they bring back dinosaurs and put them all into a theme park! https://t.co/FRexsTRI1E pic.twitter.com/8TNeE1RgkK
— harrie ☭ (@emopunkgrrrl) September 15, 2026
harrie ☭ / Via x.com