13 Reasons Why season 3: Controversial Netflix series renewed

The show is set to return in 2019

Netflix series '13 Reasons Why' has been renewed for a third season. (Credit: Netflix)

The much-debated Netflix series 13 Reasons Why has been renewed for a 13-episode third season.

On Wednesday morning, Netflix announced the news with a short teaser on social media.

The series' showrunner Brian Yorkey will return in the same capacity.

Yorkey, along with Joy Gorman, Mandy Teefey, Kristel Laiblin, Tom McCarthy, Selena Gomez and Steve Golin, will return as executive producers.

The show's original star Katherine Langford, who portrayed Hannah Baker, recently revealed she would not be returning to the show after the second season.

Although the Netflix series' ratings have been strong, the possibility of its renewal has remained controversial because of the show's subject matter.

The first two seasons of the series featured episodes with drunk driving, gun violence, graphic teen suicide and rape scenes.

As a result, 13 Reasons Why has garnered criticism by mental health experts about the possibility of the show negatively affecting young people, especially those who have suicidal thoughts.

In response to critics, title cards with advisories were added to season one and a warning plays at the beginning of season two; there is also a PSA video that plays ahead of the first episode of each season.

Yorkey discussed possible plans for season three last week at a Netflix For Your Consideration (FYC) panel on Friday saying, "What happened to Hannah will always be the first clause of the story. The rest of the story is about young people, as so many young people, maybe all young people today [learn] how to heal from the things that have hurt them…to make the world that they want it to be, not just the world they are inheriting…and above all, how to take care of each other."

13 Reasons Why is slated to return in 2019.