“Supacell” Debuts on Netflix, Providing an Original Take on the Superhero Genre with Sickle Cell Superpowers
“I wanted to tell a story about what it would look like when people like us get powers.” This is what British rapper/filmmaker Andrew ‘Rapman’ Onwubolu said in an interview with Time Out magazine regarding the primary objective behind his newly released superhero drama series, “Supacell.” Setting out to introduce a story centered on a group of ordinary Black folks who randomly acquire superpowers, Rapman wrote, directed, produced and even had a cameo appearance in the soon-to-be hit series.
The new six-episode show debuted on Netflix last Thursday, topping the charts and receiving celebrity praise from the likes of Jay-Z and Idris Elba, to name a couple. The series features an all-Black primary cast, and follows a group of five seemingly unconnected South London natives as they mysteriously develop uncanny superhuman abilities. “Supacell” holds its own as a unique superhero drama, and unlike most shows and movies within the genre, it has a more real-world edge. Instead of battling supervillains or evil monsters, the heroes in “Supacell” are regular people, and often use their powers for the sake of convenience. The five Londoners share little in common prior to the discovery of their abilities, except for one small thing – they all carry the genetic trait for Sickle Cell Disease, which is revealed to be the source of each of their powers.
When Onwubolu embarked on his journey of creating “Supacell,” he knew he wanted to make it meaningful, and genuine. By placing the origins of the character’s powers around a very real and detrimental genetic disease like Sickle Cell, which disproportionately affects people of African descent, he hoped to spread awareness for the disease, but also wanted to make it a source of strength for his characters.
Rapman started working on “Supacell” back in 2020, during the COVID-19 lockdown. He pitched the idea to Netflix and they signed on, giving him a team of seasoned writers to help create the script. After six months of writing and tweaking, he and the writers showed Netflix their progress, but they weren’t satisfied with the finished product. He then decided to start from scratch, without the influence of writers who, though talented, didn’t have an understanding of the culture of South London. He spent another nine months shaping the script on his own, and Netflix greenlit the project, beginning production immediately.
I’m the first Black man to write, direct and run his own show on Netflix. The first,” Rapman proclaims, “and I won’t be the last.
Though his music/filmmaking profession has stretched well over a decade, Rapman’s career is taking off in a new direction, and he’s working on a larger scale than ever before. It’s also safe to say that this won’t be the artist’s last directorial project, and we can expect to see many big things from him in the future, with a second season for “Supacell” already confirmed to be on the way.
