The Death & Life of John F. Donovan

In 2017, Times journalist Audrey Newhouse interviews popular actor Rupert Turner about his recently published book Letters to a Young Actor. The book collects letters he received from John F. Donovan, an actor he corresponded with as a child and who died from a drug overdose.

In a flashback to the mid-2000s, Turner is a child actor who is bullied by homophobic schoolmates and emotionally abused by his mother. Turner idolizes Donovan, who plays the lead character in the teen drama series Hellsome High. The tabloid press frequently speculates that Donovan is gay and closeted; when gossip regarding Donovan soliciting male prostitutes makes headlines, his correspondence with Turner is made public, sparking malicious speculation about the nature of Turner and Donovan's relationship. Donovan writes his final letter to Turner, and dies shortly after.

In the present, Turner says he does not know whether or not Donovan's death was related to the scandal. Newhouse muses that she initially dismissed Turner's book as "mishaps from the First World," but has reconsidered based on their meeting.