In episode 6 of ‘A Teacher’, Hannah Fidell’s controversial television adaptation of her 2013 film of the same name, we saw what happened in the aftermath of Claire Wilson (Kate Mara) confessing to her friend, Kathryn Sanders (Marielle Scott), about dating an 18-year-old boy. Claire had also told her husband: “Matt, I'm having an affair... I'm sleeping with my student.” Claire has of course been having an affair with her student, Eric Walker (Nick Robinson).
Eric, who had no idea what Claire had done, got a rude shock when cops landed up at his home, questioning him about his relationship with Claire: “Miss Wilson is your teacher? Have you ever met outside the school? Has she ever been inappropriate with you?” It turned out that Matt had told Claire's brother Nate Wilson (Adam David Thompson), an ex-military and current police officer.
But even as things got bad, we saw them take a turn for the worse. Claire and Eric met. The two land up in a hotel and have sex. They had an intimate night, but the next morning, Eric was gone. He had gone back to his mom. So, what is up next?
Episode 6 ended on a cliffhanger: Will Claire get arrested or not? The last we saw her, Claire parked her car outside a police station, presumably, to turn herself in. The promo for episode 7 sees that answered but a lot more is revealed. It would seem that Claire, as per snippets of conversation between Eric and his mom Sandy, was indeed arrested.
But there also seems to be a massive time jump between episodes 6 and 7. For starters, we see Eric at college, partying with other frat boys. We see him having sex with someone entirely new -- and she asks him if “she” (most likely Claire) taught him the moves he had pulled in bed.
As Eric’s mother talks to him at the dinner table about going for counseling -- and after being in a predatory relationship he would need that -- she also mentions that Clair is getting released in a couple of days. Both things here are important. For one, we might get to see the adverse long-term effects of his relationship with Claire on his life. As we saw in the promo, Eric is binge-drinking, and partying out of control. These seemingly self-destructive tendencies cannot be seen outside the context of his predatory relationship.
At the same time, the idea that Claire is being released would also mean that she was punished for her relationship with Eric. The only question is, how long was she incarcerated? As per Texas law, Claire's relationship with Eric may be considered sexual assault -- relations between a minor who is younger than 17 and a defendant who is three or more years older than the victim. This offense is a second-degree felony, and penalties include at least two (and up to 20) years in prison and a fine not to exceed $10,000.
At the same time, what would her arrest mean for her marriage with Matt? One thing is clear from this, of course. Claire, one way or the other, is no longer Eric’s teacher. And if she comes out of prison, Eric will likely be drawn back to her. The upcoming episode is going to be huge. That much is guaranteed!
‘A Teacher’ premiered on Tuesday, November 10, 2020, at 3 am ET on FX on Hulu with three back-to-back episodes. More episodes in the 10-episodic series will follow every week starting from Tuesday, November 17, 2020, at 11 am ET.
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