The superhero sci-fi film Code 8 has been quite the success, evolving from a short film in 2016 to the massively successful Indiegogo campaign that fueled the 2019 feature film. Code 8: Part II was released by Netflix in 2024, taking place a few years after the events of the first film. Now, star and producer Robbie Amell wants to expand the Code 8 universe with a graphic novel.
The Indiegogo campaign has launched for Code 8: Tales of Lincoln City, Volume 1, a Connor Reed origin story unfolding across two timelines. It picks up with Connor as a mentor for at-risk powered youth. New information comes to light about his father’s life and death, and he is pulled into a mystery that leads back to a powerful corporation, a shattered rebellion, and a betrayal that changed everything. As the story jumps between Connor’s present-day investigation and his father’s fight for justice decades earlier, this origin story explores the legacy of resistance, the weight of memory, and what it truly means to have power.
The campaign-exclusive 120+ page graphic novel features breakout Hellboy artist Alex Nieto, legendary DC/Marvel cover artist Raúl Allén, and visionary X-Men graphic designer Tom Muller.
We spoke with Amell at Fan Expo Canada in Toronto about the origins of Code 8, the ever-growing universe, and the love for the fans that made it all possible.
Character concept art by Interior Artist, Alex Nieto:
HGL: It’s been almost ten years since the Code 8 franchise began. How did you initially get involved in this project?
Robbie Amell: Jeff [Chan] and I had wanted to work together for a while, and he phoned me and was like, “Look, I’m kind of pissed off with the industry right now. I want to make a short film. You put in half the money, and I’ll put in half the money, you be the lead, and we’ll see what happens.” I asked him what it was about, and he said, “I don’t know yet, but it will be great.” I knew Jeff’s work; we had been friends for a while, so I said ok, let’s do it.
It was supposed to be around $20,000 each. When it was all said and done, it was about $40,000 each, and it ended up being this great short film. We shot it in L.A., and it just went viral. The Indiegogo campaign was a massive success, and we kept destroying their algorithms because we would change things up in the campaign, do fun things. The Indiegogo people said we are going to stop giving you estimates because nothing makes sense anymore.
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It was very special, and the people involved with it kept asking us how they could be involved. Part II was a big Netflix movie, so we couldn’t bring people in, other than asking them for their support, to spread the word, which they did. We did over one hundred million accounts over the two movies.
This was our way to say hey, we are going to do something in between Part II and III. We weren’t sure where it was going to live, but we had talked about an origin story. We decided on my character, Connor Reed. We wanted to show you how Lincoln City became Lincoln City, and it just felt like a cool way to bring people back in, share it with them on a smaller scale.
The movies continue to get bigger and on a bigger scale, and we’ll get to Part II eventually. But that’s a few years of Jeff and Chris’s [Paré] life, so this is it for now, and it’s really exciting.
HGL: Was there talk about doing a graphic novel during the initial film process, or did it just come up one day, and it was like, yeah, let’s do this?
Robbie Amell: We even talked about doing a small one during the original campaign, or maybe it was during Part II, thinking about bringing a comic out for the fans. We just dabbled with it. Then we were like, you know, we’ve never half assed anything in this world, if we’re going to do this, let’s see what we can do.
We put out some feelers for the creatives. We ended up getting some incredible people who were interested, and Jeff and Chris had done so much prep work on Code 8 as a whole. Lincoln City, my character’s backstory, all these characters’ backstories were kind of pre-written in a way. We have the information. So it was taking that, working with who we have on the graphic novel, and building it out from there.
HGL: Are there plans for the graphic novel to continue after Volume 1?
Robbie Amell: Well, we’re calling this one Volume 1, so I’m hoping there’s a Volume 2 (laughs). Look, at the end of the day, it always comes down to quality of work and interest from the fans. I know the quality bar has been set very high by the people involved, and we’re hoping people like it. It’s exciting to share something with the people who helped us get here, and hopefully, we continue to go from there.
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HGL: Can you talk a bit about the support you’ve received from your fans?
Robbie Amell: It’s so cool. It’s always overwhelming and surprising, and coming to something like Fan Expo Canada in Toronto and seeing people wearing Code 8 hoodies, knowing these people helped us make a movie from the campaign ten years ago, and that they are still carrying about it, is very cool.
I think we had over 150 people come out and be extras, which was amazing because we couldn’t afford that many people in a scene. Without people coming out and doing it, and also meeting the people and putting a face to the donation, finding out a lot of these people have stayed in touch and are now travel companions, it’s just the best.
We’ve seen Code 8 tattoos; it’s very special, and getting to share that with people is really what making something like this is all about. Art is subjective; some people are going to love it, some people are going to hate it, some are going to be in the middle. But when you make it with people, there’s just something different about it that is tough to put into words. It just lives with you a little more and holds a place with you a little longer.
Visit Indiegogo to learn more about the Code 8: Tales of Lincoln City, Volume 1 campaign, which is now funding.
