Stephen Amell Set To Star In A Superhero Sequel
Announcements have been made for Stephen Amell's upcoming superhero sequel project.
This article is more than 2 years old
The 2019 sci-fi thriller Code 8 had the worldbuilding potential for sequels, but felt well enough like a standalone. The movie starred real-life cousins Robbie Amell and Stephen Amell, who also served as producers on the film. Now, the pair are geared up for Code 8: Part II. The producers have just sold the movie to Netflix for streaming, as announced at the Banff World Media Festival by Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos.
Stephen Amell played Garrett in the first Code 8. His character leads a criminal underbelly, in a world where four percent of the world’s population has superpowers. Instead of being revered as masterful gods capable of extraordinary feats, those with extra powers are looked down on and considered abominations. Mostly, they’re living in poverty and taking on crummy jobs, which is the situation Robbie Amell’s character Connor is in. He’s working hard to make money for his ill mother when he meets up with Garrett.
Code 8: Part II is going to tell a fairly different story in the same world. Stephen Amell and Robbie Amell will play the same characters. Jeff Chan, the director for the first film, is back for the sequel. This time, the main player will be a girl fighting to get justice for her brother, who was killed by corrupt police officers. The Amell’s characters are going to come back together after the girl seeks them out to help her on her mission for justice, or possibly revenge.
It’s good to see that Stephen Amell is sticking in the world of science fiction and superheroes. His long run on The CW’s Arrow ended in January of 2020. In recent years, he hasn’t had time to be on much else beyond starring in Arrow, with Code 8 being a notable exception. Since he also worked as a producer on the original film, and got to work with his cousin, this seems like a natural next project for the actor.
With so many years on Arrow, it’s evident that Stephen Amell isn’t just making superhero content, he’s a fan. Recently, The Boys, an unconventional show from Amazon in the superhero genre, shared a photo of Jensen Ackles in his new costume for his character, Soldier Boy. The costume was a vastly different take from what we’ve seen in the comics. In The Boys comics, Soldier Boy is naturally clad in red, white, and blue. His new costume has him in a green superhero look.
When the new look was revealed, Stephen Amell posted about it on Instagram, tagging Jensen Ackles and captioning the photo with “You’re welcome”, since Arrow made green superhero costumes a winning look. Ackles replied, “Green Supersuits are the best.”
While Stephen Amell will hopefully remain working on superhero genre fare, he’s also lined up for a new series on Starz called Heels, a show focused on professional wrestling and a family involved in promoting it. The new show is created by Michael Waldron, the showrunner for Disney+ on Loki. The new show premieres on Starz for streaming on August 15, 2021.
