It’s time for another Strong Black Lead—or should I say, Forte Capitanare Nero?
Yep, that’s right; the blackest Netflix is going international with Zero, which will be the first scripted series to feature Afro-Italian protagonists. The series’ writer, Antonio Dikele Distefano confirmed this history-making fun fact. Fabula Pictures will be producing.
According to IndieWire:
The idea for the series, which came from Distefano — a rising star on the Italian publishing scene — “Zero” tells the story of “a shy African-origin guy, a second generation Italian, who has an incredible super power. A modern superhero who, thanks to his power, will learn how to open up to the world and to love,” per the Netflix press release.
The aim is to create what the streaming giant describes as an original and unique exploration of the rich and diverse world of underrepresented cultures in Milanese suburbs, with rap elements.
“The idea of Zero comes from my need to put different stories together in order to tell one,” the 27-year-old writer noted in the series promo video. “The story of a special boy, of a black guy, who, thanks to his superpower, manages to see the reality behind the appearance of things, people and relationships. Rap will be one of the protagonists of the story because rap is the language of our age, it is capable of describing environments that people do not see, such as the Milan suburbs where the series is set, and it is my language.”
“Our goal at Netflix is to find new local, unheard voices and give them the opportunity to tell their stories to a global audience,” Felipe Tewes, Director of International Originals at Netflix said via IndieWire. “We are really excited to work together with Antonio, Menotti and the ‘Zero’ pool of writers to bring their unique vision to life in what will be the first superhero show in our offer of Italian Original contents.”
The black brand is strong over at Netflix and I’m excited its Strong Black Lead section is expanding internationally, especially telling stories in pockets of the world that have been left untold after all of this time.
Zero is set to go into production in 2020.