A little over a decade ago, comic book creators Kwanza Osajyefo and Tim Smith 3 launched a Kickstarter campaign that raised more than $90,000 to create a comic book created Black for Black Mask Studios (an independent comic book publishing company known for their interesting and alternative stories) that operated under a very simple premise: “What if there was a world where superpowers exist, and only black people had them?”
“Part of the inspiration for Black came from my experiencing the lack of representation in comics publishing and how that directly relates to the scarceness of black characters,” said Osajyefo. “For most of comics’ history, white outcasts have been used as allegories for marginalized groups while claiming to reflect the world outside our window. Black strips away this veneer to juxtapose superpowers with race while allowing black people to see ourselves authentically in media and inviting wider audiences into parts of our experience”- Kwanza Osajyefo
Deadline reports that Warner Bros has acquired the rights to a cinematic adaptation of Black and a film is currently in development. DC’s Titans producer Bryan Edward Hill has written a script, which will focus on a young man who after surviving a police shooting discovers that he and many black people (and only black people) have superpowers, and there’s a vast conspiracy that determines the fate of the world that needs to be uncovered. Black is currently looking for a director for the film adaptation.
“We’re excited to bring this story to everyone through film, and thankful to Studio 8 for believing in it”
Partnering with Black Mask Studios and Warner Bros, Studio 8 (Alpha, White Boy Rick) CEO Jeff Robinov is excited to bring Black to the big screen to help accurately bring a new type of storytelling for black stories.