11 good Netflix teen shows with Black leads: All American and more

Teen shows with Black leads: Blood & Water

Rated TV-MA

Blood & Water is a South African mystery drama centered on Puleng Khumalo (Amamkele Qamata), a teen who’s lived in the shadow of her sister Phumelele’s kidnapping her whole life. It’s the root of the estrangement between her parents along with the suspicion of her father’s involvement in her sister’s disappearance. But when Puleng meets Fikile Bhele (Khosi Ngema) at a party, she begins to suspect the girl is her missing sister.

Fixated on discovering the truth, Puleng manipulates her way into Fikile’s school, the prestigious Parkhurst College where Fikile is both popular and a star athlete. Puleng uses her immediate connection with Fikile to get closer to her and her friends so that she can learn more about the girl’s life. Along the way she recruits Wade (Dillon Windvogel), a boy she befriended at the party, to help her in her mission to discover the truth. However, Puleng quickly learns that there’s more than one secret that her friends and family are keeping from her.

The series deals with issues of grief, human trafficking, drug and alcohol use, sexual exploration, and includes a teacher-student relationship.

Season 1 of Blood & Water is available to stream. The series was renewed for a second season.