Hopefully Supacell Season 2 has wrapped and we get that premiere date soon—especially now that Rapman’s officially on to his next project (which is in very good hands).
Netflix has tapped Andrew “Rapman” Onwubolu to direct The Council, a long-gestating crime biopic centered on Harlem’s most notorious drug syndicate, led by the infamous Nicky Barnes. The film has been in development at Netflix since at least 2019, when Will Smith was previously attached to star as Barnes and reunite with Concussion director Peter Landesman, who penned the script and remains onboard as executive producer.
At the time, the project was set up under Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith’s Overbrook Entertainment, with Landesman writing and executive producing. While Smith is no longer involved, the film remains focused on the rise and fall of The Council—the real-life organization Barnes founded that ran Harlem’s heroin trade throughout the 1970s and early 1980s.
READ: Exclusive Interview with Rapman: The Visionary Behind Supacell [VIDEO]
The Story of The Council
Barnes—who once graced the cover of Time magazine with the headline “Mr. Untouchable”—created a seven-man syndicate that ran Harlem’s drug operation with mafia-level discipline. Their reach extended from New York into New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and as far as Arizona and Canada, thanks in part to connections with the Lucchese crime family.
The members of The Council included:
- Leroy “Nicky” Barnes
- Guy Fisher
- Thomas “Gaps” Foreman
- Joseph “Jazz” Hayden
- Frank James
- Ishmael Muhammed
- Wallace Rice
The crew managed everything from drug supply to internal disputes—until 1978, when Barnes was sentenced to life without parole. After his former associates broke the organization’s internal code, Barnes became a federal informant, testifying against over 40 drug traffickers and ultimately leading to The Council’s collapse in 1983.
Barnes’ story has popped up in pop culture before, most memorably through Cuba Gooding Jr.’s portrayal in American Gangster. But this will be the first time the full scope of The Council is given the spotlight.
New Team, Same Vision
Now under a new creative direction, The Council will be helmed by Rapman—who most recently delivered Netflix’s hit superhero series Supacell. That six-episode show premiered in June 2024 and dominated Netflix’s Global Top 10 for six straight weeks, earning over 179 million hours viewed. It was praised for centering Black British life through a sci-fi lens and was renewed for a second season shortly after its release.
Joining Rapman behind the scenes is producer Matt Jackson (Children of Blood and Bone, Flowervale Street) for Jackson Pictures, alongside Jason Essex (Anonymous Nobodies) and James Lassiter. Joanne Lee and Landesman will executive produce.
Rapman’s Evolution
With The Council, Rapman continues his streak of layered storytelling rooted in identity, community, and power. From viral YouTube series (Shiro’s Story) to feature film (Blue Story) to breakout sci-fi drama (Supacell), his work consistently explores the choices and systems that shape Black life—whether in South London or 1970s Harlem.
There’s no release date yet for The Council, but the history is rich, the vision is clear, and the story is in good hands.
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