{ "id": "epay39stn8", "slug": "wtfock", "title": "WtFock", "updated": "2026-11-01", "topic_path": [ { "id": "culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture" }, { "id": "culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series", "label": "Series and fictional screen worlds", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_unscripted", "label": "Unscripted, reality, and web-native series", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series.series_unscripted" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_web_native", "label": "Web-native and streaming-original series", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series.series_web_native" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_web_native.comedy_general_webseries", "label": "Comedy, drama, and general-genre web series", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series.series_web_native.comedy_general_webseries" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_web_native.comedy_general_webseries.yr-2017-2021", "label": "Premiered 2017 to 2021", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series.series_web_native.comedy_general_webseries.yr-2017-2021" } ], "geo": [ { "id": "geo.weu.t2001.culture.performance.screen.series.series_unscripted", "label": "Western Europe · 2001 to 2020: Unscripted, reality, and web-native series", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.weu.t2001.culture.performance.screen.series.series_unscripted", "path": [ { "id": "geo.weu", "label": "Western Europe", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.weu" }, { "id": "geo.weu.t2001", "label": "Western Europe · 2001 to 2020", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.weu.t2001" }, { "id": "geo.weu.t2001.culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.weu.t2001.culture" }, { "id": "geo.weu.t2001.culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.weu.t2001.culture.performance" }, { "id": "geo.weu.t2001.culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.weu.t2001.culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "geo.weu.t2001.culture.performance.screen.series", "label": "Series and fictional screen worlds", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.weu.t2001.culture.performance.screen.series" }, { "id": "geo.weu.t2001.culture.performance.screen.series.series_unscripted", "label": "Unscripted, reality, and web-native series", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.weu.t2001.culture.performance.screen.series.series_unscripted" } ] } ], "excerpt": "wtFOCK (Skam Belgium) is the Flemish, Dutch-language remake of the Norwegian teen web series Skam, set in Antwerp, online-first with Instagram characters, seven protagonist-named seasons 2018-2023 plus 2024, IMDb 8.1/10.", "snippet": "wtFOCK (Skam Belgium) is the Flemish, Dutch-language remake of the Norwegian teen web series Skam, set in Antwerp, online-first with Instagram characters, seven protagonist-named seasons 2018-2023 plus 2024, IMDb 8.1/10.", "node": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_web_native.comedy_general_webseries.yr-2017-2021", "markdown": "# WtFock\n\n**wtFOCK** (also known as Skam Belgium) is a Flemish, Dutch-language teen web series and the Belgian adaptation of the Norwegian series *[Skam](https://www.edgepedia.org/skam-tv-series)*, following the everyday life, troubles, and relationships of Dutch-speaking high-school students in Antwerp, with each season told from a different character's point of view.[1](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/39105/wtfock) It was written by Bram Renders, Rutger Beckers, and Kris Gaens, directed by Tom Goris and Cecilia Verheyden, and produced by Sputnik Media, Telenet, and SBS Belgium.[2](https://www.sondr.eu/work/wt-fock)\n\n| Key fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Format | Online-first Flemish remake of the Norwegian web series *Skam*; daily clips at varying times on the website and the characters' Instagram accounts[3](https://www.standaard.be/nieuws/wtfock-maakt-school/47686858.html) |\n| Run | First clip dropped October 2, 2018; seven main seasons from 2018 to 2023, plus an eighth season in 2024[4](https://wtfock.fandom.com/wiki/WtFOCK) • [5](https://isitback.com/show/wtfock) |\n| Seasons | Named for their protagonists: Jana (2018, 12 episodes), Zoë, Robbe, Kato, Yasmina, Ada, and Anaïs (10 episodes each)[6](https://www.tvshowtracker.eu/en/show/wtfock-85213/renewal-status) |\n| Audience | Around 100,000 weekly viewers by the end of the first series; 'WtFOCK' became the most googled term in Belgium that year; later reporting put average weekly online viewership at 450,000[2](https://www.sondr.eu/work/wt-fock) • [7](https://www.standaard.be/nieuws/de-speeltijd-is-de-nieuwe-primetime/47836010.html) |\n| Ratings | IMDb 8.1/10 from about 1.4K votes; season 3 episodes rate 8.6 to 9.4, season 4 episodes 5.2 to 6.6[8](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9599524/ratings/) |\n| Themes | Sexual orientation, identity, bullying, body image, love, and friendship among 16 to 17 year old students[2](https://www.sondr.eu/work/wt-fock) |\n| Lockdown special | wtFOCKDOWN (2020) followed the characters in quarantine via video calls, videos, and messages; clips on wtFOCK.be were viewed more than 2,062,000 times[9](https://tvvisie.be/nieuws/belgie/jongeren-leven-massaal-mee-met-wtfockdown_100828/) |\n\n## Spoilers\n\n### Seasons and characters\n\nEach season follows one main character's perspective. Season 1 centers on Jana (played by Femke Van der Steen as Jana Ackermans), season 2 on Zoë (Veerle Dejaeger), season 3 on Robbe (Willem Herbots), season 4 on Kato, season 5 on Yasmina (Nora Dari), and seasons 6 and 7 on Ada and Anaïs.[6](https://www.tvshowtracker.eu/en/show/wtfock-85213/renewal-status) • [1](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/39105/wtfock) The cast also included Yara Veyt (Luca), Nona Janssens (Amber), Nathan Bouts (Jens), and Nathan Naenen (Senne).[1](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/39105/wtfock)\n\n**Season 3.** The third season, following Robbe, adapts the original's coming-out storyline: Robbe dates a girl but struggles to connect with her romantically, then develops feelings for Sander and comes to terms with his sexuality.[14](https://repository.uantwerpen.be/docstore/d%3Airua%3A23245) A central theme of the Flemish version is overcoming internalized homophobia: Robbe denies his sexuality through most of the season, even more so than in the original show, and his first kiss with Sander is followed by an argument and homophobic slurs, whereas the Norwegian original showed Isak and Even lying in bed together the morning after their kiss.[14](https://repository.uantwerpen.be/docstore/d%3Airua%3A23245) Unlike the other remakes, wtFOCK also included a lengthy scene of gay bashing and violence, shown after Robbe and Sander came out and shared a kiss in public; a separate analysis places this first night out as a couple, in which they become victims of gay bashing, in season 3, episode 5.[14](https://repository.uantwerpen.be/docstore/d%3Airua%3A23245) • [15](https://backoffice.biblio.ugent.be/download/01GMNAZ2Y8EJWC3MT7JB5T3RNG/01H4BPY3D7B771RFNR2N3R4M9T) On IMDb, season 3 is the series' highest-rated, with episode ratings between 8.6 and 9.4.[8](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9599524/ratings/)\n\n**Later seasons.** Season 4 (Kato) is the lowest-rated on IMDb, with episode ratings falling from 6.6 to 5.2 across its ten episodes.[8](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9599524/ratings/) Seasons 6 and 7, airing in 2023, introduced the characters Ada and Anaïs.[6](https://www.tvshowtracker.eu/en/show/wtfock-85213/renewal-status)\n\nDuring the Covid-19 quarantine period of 2020, the makers launched **wtFOCKDOWN**, a lockdown version in which the characters appeared through video calls, videos, and messages, making it the first Flemish \"social distance\" fiction series.[9](https://tvvisie.be/nieuws/belgie/jongeren-leven-massaal-mee-met-wtfockdown_100828/) Its clips on wtFOCK.be were viewed more than 2,062,000 times, and earlier stories on wtFOCK.be and VIJF.be drew about 303,000 views, for 2,365,000 views in total across both platforms.[9](https://tvvisie.be/nieuws/belgie/jongeren-leven-massaal-mee-met-wtfockdown_100828/) Producer Kris Gaens of Sputnik credited the fans' instant feedback, their interaction with the characters on the platform and social accounts, and the fan art they shared.[9](https://tvvisie.be/nieuws/belgie/jongeren-leven-massaal-mee-met-wtfockdown_100828/)\n\n## Format and origins\n\nwtFOCK adapts the format of *Skam*, the Norwegian youth series whose concept was picked up for adaptation in countries including Italy, France, the Netherlands, Germany, the United States, and Belgium.[10](https://www.screenvoice.cz/en/case-studies-en/egtabite-285-wtfock-how-sbs-belgium-telenet-reach-young-audiences-through-an-online-first-series-2/) Like the original, it is an online-first, real-time series: every character received an Instagram account, and short clips were published daily at varying times, both on social media and on the series' website, deepening the daily clips with character stories that continued even when the series itself was offline.[3](https://www.standaard.be/nieuws/wtfock-maakt-school/47686858.html) • [11](https://newsmonkey.be/het-vervolg-van-wtfock-eraan-wij-spraken-met-de-originele-schrijfster-van-skam/)\n\nThere was no conventional marketing campaign. According to Telenet marketing strategist Ils Neuts, the makers instead relied on seeding: clips were released cautiously and the actors appeared in character on Instagram, so that young viewers would discover the series themselves and want to be addressed in that way.[11](https://newsmonkey.be/het-vervolg-van-wtfock-eraan-wij-spraken-met-de-originele-schrijfster-van-skam/) The series was distributed via the commercial broadcasters VIER and VIJF on the series' own website rather than as a linear television program.[12](https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1749602021996536) It filled a gap in a Flemish television landscape in which commercial broadcasters had long offered little domestic youth programming; for De Vijver Media, the operator of VIER, VIJF, and ZES, it was the broadcaster's first domestic production for (pre)adolescents, with other youth programming consisting of foreign imports.[13](https://files.znu.edu.ua/files/Bibliobooks/Inshi75/0056173.pdf) Screenwriter Bram Renders explained that the adaptation kept the Norwegian convention of school characters who board away from home, and that the focus stays entirely on the teenagers, with parents discussed but rarely seen, creating a universe that is entirely about them.[7](https://www.standaard.be/nieuws/de-speeltijd-is-de-nieuwe-primetime/47836010.html)\n\n## Audience and reception\n\nThe series was a hit with Flemish youth while remaining largely unknown to older audiences. By the end of the first series, around 100,000 people watched each week, and 'WtFOCK' became the most googled term in Belgium that year.[2](https://www.sondr.eu/work/wt-fock) *De Standaard* later reported that an average of 450,000 people watched online each week, and noted that the [Norwegians](https://www.edgepedia.org/norwegians) considered wtFOCK the best remake of *Skam*.[7](https://www.standaard.be/nieuws/de-speeltijd-is-de-nieuwe-primetime/47836010.html) On IMDb the series holds a weighted rating of 8.1/10 from about 1.4K votes, with the most ratings coming from the United States, Belgium, the United Kingdom, Brazil, and the Netherlands.[8](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9599524/ratings/) A case-study account described it as one of the most successful online-first series in Flanders, popular among 15 to 24 year olds while remaining under the radar for other audiences for a long time, and attractive to advertisers seeking a group traditional media reach with difficulty.[10](https://www.screenvoice.cz/en/case-studies-en/egtabite-285-wtfock-how-sbs-belgium-telenet-reach-young-audiences-through-an-online-first-series-2/)\n\nEpisode counts differ between databases: IMDb lists 73 episodes across its season grid,[8](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9599524/ratings/) while TV Show Tracker and RatingGraph list 72 episodes across 7 seasons,[6](https://www.tvshowtracker.eu/en/show/wtfock-85213/renewal-status) • [16](https://www.ratingraph.com/tv-shows/wtfock-ratings-73105/) and MyShows counts 82 episodes with original air dates from October 5, 2018 to July 12, 2024.[17](https://en.myshows.me/view/59020/rating/) TVmaze likewise lists episodes of an eighth season in 2024, ending with episode 8x10 on July 12, 2024, on the web channel Play; isitback reports that the series concluded after this eighth season, which aired from May 17 to July 12, 2024.[1](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/39105/wtfock) • [5](https://isitback.com/show/wtfock)\n\n## Localisation and research\n\nAcademic work on the adaptation has examined how wtFOCK localizes the Norwegian format for Flemish viewers. A comparative film analysis found the storylines and narrative structure broadly similar to *Skam*, but with differences growing as the seasons progress: Jana closely resembles her Norwegian counterpart Eva, Zoë differs somewhat more from Noora, and the largest differences are between Robbe and Isak. Symbolic localizations include the rule forbidding Yasmina to wear her hijab at school, the inclusion of [Sinterklaas](https://www.edgepedia.org/sinterklaas), and views on drinking alcohol; the study found that most differences appear to stem from an educative and informative standpoint rather than a cultural one.[18](https://libstore.ugent.be/fulltxt/RUG01/002/839/957/RUG01-002839957_2020_0001_AC.pdf)\n\nA comparative study of the gay third season across *Skam* and four remakes, including wtFOCK, examined how LGBTQ-related themes such as first sexual experience, internalized homonegativity, and gay bashing were localized, and how heteronormativity was negotiated in the representation of gay teenagers.[19](https://www.czech-in.org/cmDownload/ECC21/ECREA_2021-Abstract_Book.pdf) A 2025 research article analyzing SKAM France/Belgique and wtFOCK argued that, despite nuancing the intersectional lived experiences of diasporic Muslim teen girls, the series continue to reiterate a dominant white gaze in their depiction of these characters, situating them amid rising gendered [Islamophobia](https://www.edgepedia.org/islamophobia) in France and Belgium.[20](https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/17496020251394827)\n\nThe series also engaged directly with youth organizations. From season 2 it worked with WAT WAT, a Belgian youth information platform uniting more than 70 organizations, on a campaign about consent, sexual assault, and what to do in case something happens, and afterward referred viewers to the platform after clips.[21](https://sites.google.com/view/behindwtfock/home/frequently-asked) Brands and health campaigns later integrated wtFOCK storylines into their outreach: the health insurer CM's \"Really?\" campaign worked with the series, placing posters in the characters' world and intervening in the storyline itself, with contextual videos referring young viewers to CM's youth platform.[22](https://www.mm.be/campaign-detail-nl-6665-ldv-united-cm-really)\n\n## References\n\n1. [wtFOCK | TVmaze](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/39105/wtfock)\n2. [wtFOCK – Sondr](https://www.sondr.eu/work/wt-fock)\n3. ['WTFock' maakt school – De Standaard](https://www.standaard.be/nieuws/wtfock-maakt-school/47686858.html)\n4. [wtFOCK | WtFOCK Wiki | Fandom](https://wtfock.fandom.com/wiki/WtFOCK)\n5. [Is wtFOCK coming back? Concluded July 12, 2024 – isitback](https://isitback.com/show/wtfock)\n6. [Is wtFOCK renewed, ended, or cancelled? – TV Show Tracker](https://www.tvshowtracker.eu/en/show/wtfock-85213/renewal-status)\n7. [De speeltijd is de nieuwe primetime – De Standaard](https://www.standaard.be/nieuws/de-speeltijd-is-de-nieuwe-primetime/47836010.html)\n8. [wtFOCK (TV Series 2018–2023) – IMDb ratings](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9599524/ratings/)\n9. [Jongeren leven massaal mee met 'wtFOCKdown' – TVvisie](https://tvvisie.be/nieuws/belgie/jongeren-leven-massaal-mee-met-wtfockdown_100828/)\n10. [EGTABITE 285: WTFOCK: How SBS Belgium & Telenet reach young audiences – ScreenVoice](https://www.screenvoice.cz/en/case-studies-en/egtabite-285-wtfock-how-sbs-belgium-telenet-reach-young-audiences-through-an-online-first-series-2/)\n11. [Het vervolg van 'wtFOCK' komt eraan, wij spraken met de originele producer van 'Skam' – Newsmonkey](https://newsmonkey.be/het-vervolg-van-wtfock-eraan-wij-spraken-met-de-originele-schrijfster-van-skam/)\n12. [The platformisation of public service broadcasting in Germany – Critical Studies in Television](https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1749602021996536)\n13. [Gender and Sexuality in the European Media (book chapter PDF)](https://files.znu.edu.ua/files/Bibliobooks/Inshi75/0056173.pdf)\n14. [From '#Evak' to '#Sobbe': A coming-out narrative throughout different adaptations – University of Antwerp repository](https://repository.uantwerpen.be/docstore/d%3Airua%3A23245)\n15. [ECS manuscript – Ghent University bibliography](https://backoffice.biblio.ugent.be/download/01GMNAZ2Y8EJWC3MT7JB5T3RNG/01H4BPY3D7B771RFNR2N3R4M9T)\n16. [wtFOCK ratings – Rating Graph](https://www.ratingraph.com/tv-shows/wtfock-ratings-73105/)\n17. [Rating of seasons and episodes wtFOCK – MyShows](https://en.myshows.me/view/59020/rating/)\n18. [The digital first series wtFOCK – Ghent University repository](https://libstore.ugent.be/fulltxt/RUG01/002/839/957/RUG01-002839957_2020_0001_AC.pdf)\n19. [ECREA 2021 Abstract Book](https://www.czech-in.org/cmDownload/ECC21/ECREA_2021-Abstract_Book.pdf)\n20. [Alienating through anger? Diasporic Muslim girls' coming-of-age in France and Belgium through the white gaze of the SKAM franchise – Critical Studies in Television](https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/17496020251394827)\n21. [Behind wtFOCK – Frequently asked](https://sites.google.com/view/behindwtfock/home/frequently-asked)\n22. [LDV United/CM: \"Really?\" – Media Marketing](https://www.mm.be/campaign-detail-nl-6665-ldv-united-cm-really)\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Unscripted, reality, and web-native series › Web-native and streaming-original series › Comedy, drama, and general-genre web series › Premiered 2017 to 2021*\n\n*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n", "same_as": [], "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/wtfock", "markdown_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/wtfock.md", "license": { "name": "Edgepedia Community License 1.0", "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license", "summary": "Free with credit, commercial use included. AI training is open to everyone. For other uses, organizations over USD 100M in revenue or 100M monthly users license separately.", "spdx": "LicenseRef-Edgepedia-Community-1.0" }, "credit": "\"WtFock\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/wtfock. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "credit_md": "\"[WtFock](https://www.edgepedia.org/wtfock)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), [https://www.edgepedia.org/wtfock](https://www.edgepedia.org/wtfock). [Edgepedia Community License 1.0](https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license).", "credit_html": "\"WtFock\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/wtfock. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "speakable": "wtFOCK is the Flemish, Dutch-language remake of the Norwegian teen web series Skam, set in Antwerp, online-first with Instagram characters, seven protagonist-named seasons 2018-2023 plus 2024, IMDb 8.1/10." }