Supacell’s Sickle Cell Disease: Why Do the Eyes Glow Yellow?

Netflix‘s Supacell is creating massive awareness of lesser-known sickle cell disease through its realistic storyline. The series centers around a team of black people wielding extra-ordinary superpowers. In unity, they leverage their gifted powers against any threat that harms their near and dear ones. Additionally, their power activation enables their eyes to glow yellow, making viewers curious to know the reason behind it.

So, here’s all you need to know about why their eyes glow yellow.

How are Supacell’s powers connected to the sickle cell disease?

The recent finale addresses the origin of the titular five characters’ powers and turns out it stems from a rare disease called sickle cell. This disease is biologically inherited, affecting hemoglobin and transforming blood cells into an abnormal shape. These sticky cells usually move together, blocking the blood flow. Due to this illness, individuals often suffer from stroke, eye problems, or even more severe problems. Similarly, the show sheds light on sickle cell disease through its superhero take.

In the series, the main characters’ supacell powers are gifted as they inherited the disease from one or both parents. Ray, a hideous villain in the series, explains the concept perfectly mentioning that Supacell powers are a mutated version of sickle cell disease. It can be inactive for a long time, but in the right conditions, it will eventually activate itself. He says, “At least one of your parents had sickle cell, or they both had the trait. And supacell is a mutation of sickle cell. It’s very rare, and even if you have it, it can lay dormant in your body forever. But it can also awaken, given the right conditions. Close proximity with another activated supacell is most common.” 

Why do Michael and others have yellow glowing eyes in Supacell?

Jaundice is a common symptom for individuals diagnosed with sickle cell disease, enabling their eyes to turn yellow. Similarly, Supacell’s character suffers from the same disease and that’s where their power comes from. Thus, their yellow glowing eyes subtly hint at real-life symptoms and also mark the activation of their power.

In a conversation with Netflix, director Rapman revealed how he likes the character’s powers and wanted to raise awareness about this inherited condition. He hopes that “[the series] make the people with it feel empowered, make them feel seen, just give them a voice.”