Prime Video’s We Were Liars, adapted from E. Lockhart’s novel, has been trending in the top 5 on the platform. Its gripping plot and emotional twist deliver, but the “rich, white people bad” narrative sours the experience. The story follows the Sinclair family on their private island, Beechwood, near Martha’s Vineyard- a liberal’s nightmare of wealth and “privilege.” As one character proclaims, the family estate was “built on a foundation of hate.” Told through eldest Sinclair grandchild Cadence’s (Emily Alyn Lind) perspective, the show diverges from the book, per Elle, emphasizing a woke agenda. Notably, teen Johnny (Joseph Zada) is now gay, and patriarch Harris’s (David Morse) “racism and privilege” are emphasized. Cousins Cadence, Johnny, and Mirren (Esther McGregor) spend summers on Beechwood with Gat (Shubham Maheshwari), who joins his uncle Ed (Rahul Kohli), partner to Johnny’s mother, Carrie (Mamie Gummer). Ed and Gat, of Indian descent, are the story’s moral anchors, alongside the “woke” teens rejecting their white, rich privilege. The teens are nicknamed “The Liars” for their childhood antics. The show’s soundtrack, while praised, is marred by songs with lyrics that reject Jesus or ask, “Do you want to be a satanist with me?” The minor teen characters are also heavily sexualized and drink entire bottles of wine in front of their parents. In episode 4, “The Fourth of You Lie,” Gat teases Cadence about her book, Caste, which she calls a “performative social justice how-to-manual” but insists she’s reading to “be a better person. To see.” This echoes episode 3, “The Ties Were Black, the Lies Were White" where she defends challenging Harris, saying, “I’m trying to call out injustice and use my privilege for good.” Later in episode 4, Mirren and water taxi driver Ebon (Dempsey Bryk) bond over disdain for the secrets of the wealthy, citing “transphobe Republican senators with gay escorts on speed dial.” Mirren: You see that guy, Jake? He sells pills to sixth graders. And Deacon is so alt-right, he's a fascist. And Kurt sexually assaulted his best friend's sister when she was too drunk to fight him off. So yeah, I'm sorry, but they don't get to give my cousin any kind of attention. Ebon: How do you know that? Mirren: It's just like you said. People talk around people that they perceive to be invisible. And invisibility isn't just for water taxi drivers. It also applies to girls that they don't think are hot. Ebon: They think you're hot. Mirren: No, they think I'm weird. And weird cancels out hot, so. Ebon: You know, I sort of, uh, pride myself on being the keeper of Vineyard secrets. You know, dark sh*t, secret families, embezzlers, transphobe Republican senators that keep gay escorts on speed dial. Seriously, it sucks sometimes knowing all that. In episode 5, “Lying Together in a Silver Lining,” Harris is chastised by Cadence again while Johnny says he’s just old, not racist: Thatcher: Huh. Is that ivory? Carrie: They were my favorites. Mom actually said that they would be perfect for Red Gate. Penny: There's no way that she said that. Bess: That's not how... Harris: They belong where they are. I am not dead. Yet. Thatcher: You will want to include them in an asset inventory, though. Bess: What asset inventory? Harris: Thatcher and I have been going over the estate plan. Penny: Um, you're changing your will? Harris: To account for new circumstances. Johnny: Isn't ivory illegal, Granddad? I don't mean that illegal is a bad thing. Harris: No, you just need to know how to get it. Never take no for an answer. Yeah, this little slip of a China girl sold those to us in Shanghai. Cadence: Um, they're illegal for a reason, right? Maybe you could auction the statues off and use the money and donate it to a wildlife conservatory or something. Harris: Cadence, you're not to tell me what to do with my earnings. Your gran loved ivory. And, luckily, Orientals, they care far more about money than they do legalities. Cadence: I mean, you can't say "Oriental." Harris: Oriental? Cadence: Or "China girl." Harris: Oriental- it's an academic term. Just ask Edward Said. Your generation is so damn eager to be offended. Johnny: It's true. Outrage addiction. It's an epidemic. I blame TikTok. Cadence: You could have had my back. You know what he said was wrong. Johnny: I didn't say it. I didn't f*cking say it, okay? Also, it's not like he's racist, okay? He's just old. You just need to stay on his good side. If he says the kids these days are a bunch of woke freaks, then there's no harm in nodding and smiling. By episode 7, “Everybody Knows the Captain Lied,” the teens agree Harris is a “racist piece of sh*t” after Cadence calls lemons a “symbol of colonization": Cadence: Did you know lemons are kind of a symbol of colonization? It's true, Granddad. Yeah, Columbus brought citrus seeds from the Americas. So technically, our yearly lemon fest tradition only exists because of a genocidal slave trader. Harris: Whoa, fascinating. Penny: Well, that is her AP history talking, because she is determined to get into Harvard on her own merit, Dad. Harris: Well, I've been thinking a lot about Harvard lately. I think it might be nice to leave a good portion of my estate to my alma mater. Cadence: Actually, you know, I didn't learn the thing about Columbus and the lemons from history class, Mom. Gat read about it. He's the smartest Liar, right? We also learn Harris forced Carrie to choose between marrying Ed or having Harris cover up a crime Johnny committed. When Cadence confronts him over the matter, Harris insists he can’t be racist because he’s a Democrat: Cadence: Hey. What did they mean about Gat and Ed and the inheritance? Harris: Franklin? Eleanor? Cadence: Granddad. Harris: Where are the dogs? Cadence: Asleep in the laundry. Did you tell Carrie you would cut her off because she was with Ed? Harris: Carrie's a grown woman. She had a choice to make. Cadence: You never liked them, did you? Gat and Ed. You could barely stomach them. That's why you never use their names. Harris: On the contrary. They never liked us. No, I have high standards, Cadence. I will not apologize for them. Cadence: White standards? Harris: Are you saying I'm racist? Cadence: I think you don't like Gat with me, and you don't like Carrie with Ed. I think you tolerated them for a long time because you wanted to believe certain things about who you are. Harris: No, I believe in who we are. Who we have been for centuries. It's my duty to protect this family. Cadence: You tolerated Gat and Ed. But when Carrie talked about babies, it made you sick. You couldn't let them mess up the family. Sinclairs are blonde and square chinned. We freckle in the sun. That's what this is, isn't it? You don't want Indian grandchildren. You don't want to ruin the pictures. Harris: Oh, for Christ's sake, Cadence, I'm a Democrat! The writers think they’re clever by slapping a “Democrat” label on Harris as if they’re not biased, but they’re obviously implying only Republicans are racist. It’s a cynical sleight-of-hand as they wink at the audience and feed the tired narrative that all roads to racism lead to the political right. In episode 8, “My Friends are Lying in the Sun,” Harris softens after a tragic twist (a powerful, tear-jerking one at that), but Cadence still rejects him and Beechwood entirely. In the end, We Were Liars is a glossy, well-acted drama that hooks you with a twisty plot and sun-soaked island vibes, but its heavy-handed, woke sermonizing on wealth, whiteness and privilege feels more like a liberal college lecture than entertainment. Racism is evil, of course, but the show’s sanctimonious tone makes it hard to enjoy without rolling your eyes.