John Boyega’s UpperRoom to Develop Non-English Language Films With Netflix

John Boyega’s UpperRoom Productions, an independent production company founded by the British-Nigerian actor, have created a partnership with Netflix to develop non-English language films.

Boyega’s production company will develop film projects based on stories, cast, characters, crew, literary properties, mythology, screenplays and/or other elements in or around African countries, with a focus on West and East Africa. 

This further strengthens Netflix’s commitment to invest in African content creators and to tell stories that are made in Africa and watched by the world. “Africa has a rich history in storytelling and for Netflix, this partnership with John and UpperRoom presents an opportunity to further our investment in the continent while bringing unique African stories to our members both in Africa and around the world,” said David Kosse, Vice President of International Film at Netflix.

UpperRoom, the independent TV & film production company founded by Boyega in 2016 was set up to facilitate his debut producing role on the hit film Pacific: Uprising, which he co-produced and starred in with Legendary Entertainment and was distributed via Universal. Since then, the team at UpperRoom have been developing a slate of projects, across film and TV, including some unscripted content with the day to day operations overseen by Yara Shaikh, VP of Productions.

“I am thrilled to partner with Netflix to develop a slate of non-English language feature films focused on African stories and my team and I are excited to develop original material. We are proud to grow this arm of our business with a company that shares our vision,” said John about the deal with Netflix.

Netflix recently signalled its intent to increase its investment in Africa’s creative community with the production of its first original scripted series from Nigeria, the yet to be titled “Akin Omotoso Project” as well as other African Originals - Blood & Water and Mama K’s Team 4 - that will premiere later this year and join Netflix’s first Africa Original, Queen Sono that debuted on February 28. 

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About John Boyega

John Boyega, is a British-Nigerian actor known for playing ‘Finn’ in the Star Wars sequel trilogy films, The Force Awakens (2015), The Last Jedi (2017), and The Rise of Skywalker (2019). Boyega rose to prominence in his native United Kingdom for his role as Moses in the 2011 sci-fi comedy film Attack the Block. Boyega’s other credits include historical drama film Detroit (2017), the science fiction film Pacific Rim: Uprising (2018) and the drama Imperial Dreams (2014). Boyega received the BAFTA Rising Star Award in 2016.

Boyega became a producer in 2016, when he set up his production company, UpperRoom Productions, which is based in London. His debut producing credit is on the hit film, Pacific Rim: Uprising

About UpperRoom 

UpperRoom Productions is a film and TV production company founded by British - Nigerian actor John Boyega, with Yara Shaikh as VP of Production. The company’s debut co-production was the hit Pacific Rim: Uprising. UpperRooms mission is to develop and produce stories of the unheard. They are committed to sourcing stories and creating content that encourages audiences to view the world from a new lens, whilst also ensuring its engaging, informative and entertaining. Their projects will also aim to depict global narratives, bringing together audiences and stories from all over the world.

About Netflix

Netflix is the world’s leading internet entertainment service with over 167 million paid memberships in over 190 countries enjoying TV series, documentaries and feature films across a wide variety of genres and languages. Members can watch as much as they want, anytime, anywhere, on any internet-connected screen. Members can play, pause and resume watching, all without adverts or commitments.