Flowers for Algernon (2015): cast, story & where to watch

Released in 2015, Flowers for Algernon is a drama and sci-fi & fantasy series.

What it’s about. Shiratori Sakuto is 28, but has the intelligence of a 6-year-old boy. He works for Dream Flower Service, a flower distribution centre which provides employment for problem youth. One day, he and a colleague, Yanagawa Ryuichi, delivers a rose bouquet to the apartment building where Mochizuki Haruka lives. Because Haruka does not know that the deliveryman is mentally challenged, she is shocked by his response and tries to call the police. Haruka works for a brain physiology research centre where Professor Hachisuka Daigo has been studying the improvement of mental performance. He has succeeded in lab experiments on a white mouse called Algernon. Sakuto is transformed into a genius through surgery. But Algernon's new intelligence begins to fade, and he dies. Sakuto realises that his genius, too, is destined to leave him.

Who’s in it. Flowers for Algernon stars Tomohisa Yamashita as Sakito Shiratori, Chiaki Kuriyama as Haruka Mochizuki, Masataka Kubota as Ryuichi Yanagawa and Asuka Kudo as Kosuke Hiyama, among others.

How it landed. With an audience score of 8.3/10, Flowers for Algernon sits among the best-reviewed titles in the catalogue.

Where to watch. Streaming options change often. See the full, country-by-country breakdown on our where to watch Flowers for Algernon page.

If you liked it. Fans of Flowers for Algernon tend to enjoy Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba and Attack on Titan.