‘Supacell’ creator Rapman thinks superheroes need to keep it real
Identifying himself as “a massive fan of the genre,” Andrew Onwubolu, who goes by Rapman,recentlytold CNN that he “always wanted to tell the stories about superpowers,” but was never seeing those in a way that he thought seemed believable.
“It was just the things that the people in these stories kept on doing. Getting powers and getting a cape and the spandex, and then seeing the world,” he said. “It’s just like, I love it for the saving the humanity part, but realistically, don’t you have bills to pay first?”
That desire to lean into the realism of life – even if the character has outlandish powers – led to the buzzy Netflix series “Supacell,” which Rapman created and serves as its showrunner.
“Supacell” has been topping the charts on Netflix and the British rapper, producer and filmmaker is being hailed for his creativity.
The series, set in south London, tells the story of a group of Black citizens who suddenly develop superpowers that they must adapt to as one man seeks to unite them to help save his girlfriend.
While the knee-jerk reaction might be to compare the show to Marvel’s “Black Panther” or other titles, Rapman has other ideas.
“The closest comparison I would say is ‘Heroes,’” he said of the popular American sci-fi series which ran for four seasons on NBC starting in 2006.
Rapman has to look across the pond for comparisons because the United Kingdom has never had a project like “Supacell.” Adding diverse characters and setting the action in London takes the proceedings to another level and its success is something he hopes to see replicated.
“When do you ever see an all-Black cast in the sci-fi genre at all?” he asked. “I just want there to be more. I’m hoping that another studio sees this and goes, ‘Oh that has done really well for Netflix.’”
At the same time, he said he doesn’t want the show to be labeled as a “Black show” even though it has a mostly Black cast.
“I don’t call it a Black show, I’d rather them just call it a good show,” he said. “When I watch ‘Game of Thrones’ or ‘Breaking Bad,’ I don’t think, ‘That’s a great White show.’”
Rapman’s favorite series of all time is “The Wire” (which like “Game of Thrones” is an HBO series and owned by CNN’s parent company), and it’s obvious from his own work that he appreciates such layered and realistic storytelling.
‘Let me do a show where Black is power’
In addition to his work in music, Rapman is known for his YouTube series “Shiro’s Story” and the feature film “Blue Story.” But he came to do the TV series partially because of the 2020 death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police officers.
There were protests worldwide at that time, including in the UK, and Rapman said, “I remember thinking, is that the best thing I can do to uplift the community at a time where it felt so bad, felt so dark at that time?”
“I said, let me do a show where Black is power, ” he said. “No one’s getting shot and if they are getting shot, they’re so fast, they can dodge the bullets. They’re so powerful, they can freeze the bullet and the bullet will dust drop on the floor.”
Having not worked on a TV show from conception to air before, Rapman said he had no idea it would be four years later before his vision would come to fruition.
Now fans are waiting on word as to whether “Supacell” will get a second season. Its creator is anxious to know that as well.
“I’ve got a few things in the works,” he said. “But if I do commit to something, that’s kind of me walking away from ‘Supacell.’ So, it’s hard for me to make a decision now.”
“Do I wanna go off and do something else and leave my show behind?” he wondered. “But, you know, Netflix needs to hurry you up and make their choices as well.”
The success of "Supacell" has been attributed to Rapman's desire to incorporate realism into the world of superpowers, creating a unique narrative that differs from traditional superhero stories. This can be seen as a departure from shows like Marvel's "Black Panther" and a closer comparison to the popular American sci-fi series "Heroes."
The series' focus on an all-Black cast in the sci-fi genre is a rarity, and Rapman hopes that its success will inspire other studios to follow suit, moving away from labeling such shows as "Black shows" and instead appreciating them for their quality.
