In the 1970s, there was the rise of blaxploitation movies, which received something of a mixed response. On the one hand, blaxploitation movies were rife with stereotypes; on the other hand, blaxploitation movies were some of the first movies to feature black people as the focuses of the screen rather than mere side characters. As a result, blaxploitation movies have had a huge impact on American culture as a whole, which in turn, makes it no wonder that there is still a fair amount of interest in them.
One excellent example of blaxploitation movies was Superfly, which was a crime drama that came out in 1972. In it, a cocaine dealer named Youngblood Priest decides to make one last deal for the purpose of raising enough funds to sustain himself while he searches for a new occupation. Over the course of the movie, he encounters a wide range of forces that are opposed to him quitting cocaine deal, with the one exception being his love interest, Georgia. At the time, Superfly was more than a little bit controversial. Some people blasted it for what they perceived to the glorification of drug dealing. In contrast, other people saw it as a condemnation of drug dealing, which in turn, served as a subtle reminder that the Civil Rights movement had not accomplished all of its aims by pointing out the lack of better economic opportunities for black people living in urban neighborhoods. Whatever the case, Superfly is still remembered by a lot of people out there, which explains why there is now a Superfly remake underway.
So far, a fair amount of information has been released about the Superfly remake. For example, we know that the director for the upcoming movie will be Director X, who might be better-known to some as Julien Christian Lutz. Primarily, Director X is best-known for his involvement with a remarkable number of music videos for a wide range of well-known artists, but it should be noted that he has had a number of other projects as well, as shown by the fact that he has his own clothing line.
Cast-wise, Michael K. Williams has just signed on with the project, which should come as welcome news to those who remember his performance in The Wise with fondness. Williams will be playing the character named Scatter, though it remains to be seen how similar the character in the new movie will be be to his predecessor. Meanwhile, other actors who have been cast for the Superfly remake include Trevor Jackson, Jason Mitchell, and others, though not too much has been said who will be playing which roles.
Regardless, it is clear that progress is being made on the Superfly remake. As a result, it is not unreasonable to think that it will be coming out at some point in the not so distant future. It will be interesting to see how the new Superfly compares to its predecessor, particularly since the predecessor’s messages still remain quite relevant in modern times.
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