Ken Park

Shawn appears to be the group’s most stable member on the surface, but beneath the exterior he harbors troubling dynamics. He maintains a complicated relationship with his girlfriend Hannah's mother, Rhonda, and reveals a disturbing mix of desire and fantasy involving her while being intimate with Hannah. The adults around him remain largely unaware of the deeper tensions shaping his days, creating a dissonance between outward normalcy and inner conflict. His arc probes how secrecy and longing can destabilize fragile relationships.

Claude endures physical and emotional abuse from his alcoholic father, who resents him for not fitting a conventional mold of masculinity. He cares for his pregnant mother while attempting to keep some semblance of safety in the home. The night his father returns intoxicated and makes a predatory advance pushes Claude to flee in search of safety away from the chaos. The arc highlights the claustrophobia of an abusive household and a boy trying to protect himself and his family.

Peaches lives under a stern, deeply religious father who clings to the memory of his deceased wife in his daughter. When her father discovers Peaches with her boyfriend, he imposes harsh discipline and a coercive, quasi-wedding scenario that strips away her sense of safety at home. The arc emphasizes controlling power and the pressure to conform to rigid rules.

Tate channels his anger and loneliness into volatile behavior, including self-harm and autoerotic acts. His cruelty escalates, culminating in violence against his grandparents. He records his own thoughts and confesses in a way that hints at a larger pattern, and his eventual arrest frames the consequences of a troubled psyche.

Ken Park is the title character who bookends the film with his death. The early scenes reveal him impregnating his girlfriend and taking a low-wage job, while at the skate park the group discusses abortion and the ripple effects of their choices. His life and death cast a shadow over the other teenagers' stories and raise questions about fate, responsibility, and whether things might have turned out differently.

Rhonda is Hannah's mother and the girlfriend of Shawn, representing a complicated adult presence in the teenagers' lives. Her relationship with Shawn unpacks desire, boundaries, and the tension between desire and propriety. The character's perspective hints at the consequences of crossing lines in a life lived under close scrutiny.

Hannah is the girlfriend who becomes a focal point of the group’s dynamics. Her relationship with Shawn is tested by the adults around them and the pressures of a conservative environment, highlighting the vulnerability and resilience of teenage affection.