Netflix has delivered plenty of shows that push the boundaries of how sensuality is displayed on TV. Bridgerton’s "important" steamy sex scenes show characters getting it on during the Regency era, for example. And the coming-of-age series Sex Education featured a lot of awkward sex scenes, representing how teens navigate physical intimacy in high school. But an upcoming show will amp it up a bit by telling the true tales of an infamous porn star. With that, an exec from the streaming service explained why this particular series is so ideal for the platform.
Rocco Siffredi is arguably one of the world's most renowned porn stars. Since 1986, the “Italian Stallion” has starred in over 1,300 pornos. You’ll get to see his life told by way of Netflix's biopic series Supersex. The streaming service surely has a number of esteemed titles within its library, like Stranger Things, Orange is the New Black and Narcos, just to name a few. So why add this one? Well, the company's Vice President of Italian Originals, Eleanora Andreatta, told Deadline that it comes down to a few variables including a desire to tell "courageous" stories:
The reason why we wanted to do it so much is at Netflix is we want to find courageous, authentic stories with Italian production. It’s a story only Netflix could do, and it breaks taboos. It responds completely to what we are looking for.
This doesn't represent a significant step for the company content-wise. Porn was at the center of the documentary Money Shot: The Porn Hub Story and the docuseries Hot Girls Wanted: Turned On, which shed light on the industry. But it's not often that an entertainment entity (let alone one as big as Netflix) would produce a biopic series about a porn star like Supersex. Then again, the company always has seemingly strived to push the envelope. So I suppose it makes sense that it would want to tackle a more “taboo” subject like this one.
Francesca Manieri, known for co-creating We Are Who We Are (which is available to Max subscribers), thought someone was joking when she was asked to write a series about Rocco Siffredi. More interestingly, Manieri is greatly known for writing stories about female empowerment. While Supersex would mark brand-new territory for her, she saw it as a chance to “turn the tables” when it comes to showing porn from a male perspective. She also wanted to dig deep into the sex industry in Italy during the ‘80s and ‘90s. Eleanora Andreatta also said of Manieri's efforts:
[It's a series] that creates a reflection on the central role of sex and the imagination of sexuality in contemporary Europe.
Another reason why it was important for Supersex to come to Netflix is that Italy has a young core demographic. Eleonora Andreatta felt it was important for the 2024 Netflix TV release to speak to youth with a show told from their perspective. To that point, the series does indeed promise a coming-of-age story that examines the male ego and the struggles of filming sex while yearning for personal intimacy in real life. I'm intrigued to see whether the show connects with audiences in the way that the execs hope it does.
Those who'd like to check out Supersex will want to have a Netflix subscription so they can stream it when it premieres on March 6th as part of the 2024 TV schedule.
