For years, Toronto-born cousins Stephen and Robbie Amell inhabited the same superhero universe but never interacted on screen.
鈥淪teve and I knew that we wanted to work together.We had shot one scene in 鈥楾he Flash鈥 where we weren't allowed to talk to each other,鈥 Robbie, who starred as Ronnie Raymond in the CTV/CW series, says on a video call with his cousin from New York.
He says the show鈥檚 producers 鈥渏ust thought it was too weird鈥 to have him and Stephen, who played lead character Oliver Queen in CTV/CW鈥檚 鈥淎rrow,鈥 converse in the show, given that they鈥檙e related.
鈥淎sk [Arrowverse creator] Greg Berlanti. We don鈥檛 know why,鈥 says Stephen.
The desire to act together was partly why the Amells decided to create their own superhero franchise, starring themselves.
鈥淐ode 8鈥 began as a proof-of-concept short they made with director Jeff Chan in 2016. The subsequent Indiegogo campaign, which aimed to crowdfund $200,000 to make a full-length movie, raised a staggering $2.4 million.
The Amells debuted the film theatrically in 2019. It was later released on Netflix, where it cracked the Top 10 list in the United States.
The Toronto-shot sci-fi action film depicts a world where four per cent of the population is born with special powers, but instead of getting the superhero treatment, they face discrimination and economic hardship. One such person is Connor Reed, played by Robbie. Desperate to raise money for his ailing mother, he joins a group of criminals led by Garrett Kelton, played by Stephen, using his powers to pull off a series of heists.
The sequel, 鈥淐ode 8 Part II,鈥 premieres Wednesday on Netflix. The streaming giant has acquired the global rights for the film.
鈥淚 really tried to cultivate a fan base when I was on 鈥楢rrow,鈥 and these people just supported me and they came with me,鈥 Stephen says of the overwhelming response to 鈥淐ode 8.鈥
鈥淭he way that it happened in terms of the amount of support was completely unexpected. But, I mean, people just did it and it was amazing.鈥
鈥淐ode 8 Part II鈥 picks up after the events of the first film. Connor is working as a janitor and is distancing himself from Garrett, who has ruined his life. But when 14-year-old Pav, played by Toronto's Sirena Gulamgaus of CTV's "Transplant," is targeted by corrupt police officers, he finds himself once again working with Garrett to save the young girl.
Despite Netflix being on board this time around, the Amells, who produced the film, say they were given complete autonomy on the sequel.
鈥淭hey really believed in us to make the second movie the same way we made the first movie, just with a little bit more money,鈥 says Robbie.
Robbie adds that the first film鈥檚 crew was 鈥渁ll friends and family,鈥 and 鈥90 per cent鈥 of them returned for the sequel, which was shot across the Greater Toronto Area, Hamilton and Kingston, Ont.
Chan, a friend of the Amells who directed both films, says rather than splurging on "bigger explosions," the goal of the sequel was to make it feel "very human-scale and very intimate," similar to the first.
鈥淲hether we're independent or whether we're working with Netflix, the fact we had a partner that allowed us to keep our connection with the story we're telling, with the way we want to make the movie, and with our fan base, I think really helped keep this one special," he says.
For the Amells, the chance to film a sci-fi franchise in the place they grew up felt surreal. One scene was shot just outside Stephen鈥檚 childhood home in the Bayview Avenue and Highway 401 area, northeast of Toronto.
"I didn't even know we were filming there," says Stephen.
"I got driven to set. They were like, 'All right, we're going to go to the location.' I was like, 'OK. Awesome. Wait a minute. Where are we going? We're hanging a left turn here? This is so cool.'"
It may sound like the kind of film the cousins grew up dreaming of making together, but they insist this isn鈥檛 the case. In fact, Robbie, who鈥檚 35, says he and Stephen, who鈥檚 42, drifted apart as kids because of the age gap.
鈥淲e actually didn't know the other one was getting into acting. We both kind of fell into it separately around the same time. And we became buddies again when we were both living in L.A.,鈥 says Robbie.
The two bonded while catching L.A. Kings games together and talking shop about the industry.
鈥淚t was really nice to have somebody you can confide in and bounce ideas off of because it is such a lonely business and there鈥檚 a ton of rejection,鈥 says Robbie.
Finally getting to work together all these years later has been 鈥渋ncredibly cool,鈥 says Stephen.
鈥淚've learned a lot from Rob as an actor. He is much more thoughtful than I am. He just goes about his business. I'm particular and occasionally annoyed. I learned from him how to calm down.鈥
Robbie says despite not spending much time together as kids, he and Stephen now know each other very well. Almost too well.
鈥淪tephen knows how to pull a smile out of me. He knows how to piss me off. And we get to use that to our advantage, which is really great. It鈥檚 been fun to watch him in these movies. It鈥檚 just the best job in the world. We get to work with friends and family.鈥
This report by 春色直播was first published Feb. 26, 2024.
