Superwog1 or just simply Superwog, is a YouTube duo consisting of two Australian brothers, Theodore and Nathan Saidden. The channel consists of various videos including comedies and skits. They have gained over 3 million subscribers and 483 million video views. They have produced a television comedy series based on their YouTubesketch comedies. The series follows Theo, aka "Superwog", his family, and his friend Johnny, getting into all kinds of trouble throughout the Australian suburbia.
Produced by Princess Pictures with production support from Film Victoria, the original series was developed in association with Screen Australia and YouTube through the "Skip Ahead" initiative. The six part series was the first Australian long-form series to be released on YouTube, followed by ABC linear channel, and at its conclusion had reached 13.5 million people across YouTube alone, with another 1 million plus reached across ABC. ABC Comedy.[3]
The series premiered on 9 October
2018, following a successful pilot aired in 2017. On 11 November 2020, a second season was announced, and all 6 episodes finally aired on 13 June 2021 on ABC iview.[4][5][6]
On 24 August 2022, both long form seasons of the series were released worldwide on Netflix.[7] However, due to the term wog being considered an ethnic slur to people from the Mediterranean and Middle Eastern regions, Superwog is displayed as Superbro on versions of Netflix outside of Australia. On 2 September of that same year, a short sketch titled Meeting with Netflix was uploaded to the official Superwog YouTube channel, as a way to promote the series' arrival to the streaming site.[8]
Background
The Superwog series is based on characters from the YouTube channel of the same name, created by brothers Theodore and Nathan Saidden. The brothers were born in Sydney to a Greek-Egyptian mother and Egyptian father. Growing up, they attended the Trinity Grammar School in the Inner West suburbs of Sydney.[9][10]
The series depicts humorous situations involving the titular character, an archetypal wog. The two cited Sacha Baron Cohen, Chris Lilley and Fat Pizza as influences for the series,[11] and drew inspiration from their childhoods, noting they would "re-enact scenes of [their] mum and dad fighting" and "derive a lot of observational comedy from their arguments".[12] The Saidden brothers began filming and uploading Superwog videos to their YouTube channel in 2008, while Theo was studying law at university.[13]
The YouTube series gained notable popularity, and has been adapted into stage shows.[13][14] The series launched for Adult Swim in 2013,[15] and in 2017, formed part of The Slot sketch comedy series.[16] In 2019, the Saidden brothers began performing Superwog as a live show in Australia and New Zealand.[17]
Production
The Superwog pilot was produced by Paul Walton at Princess Pictures and supported by Screen Australia and Google, funded through Skip Ahead. It was written and created by Theodore and Nathan Saidden. Uploaded to YouTube on 16 July 2017, it quickly rose to #1 on the trending page on Australian YouTube in 2017, with over 14 million views.[18]
The pilot follows Superwog (Theodore Saidden) and his friend Johnny (Nathan Saidden), who work at a fast-food store.[19]
Cast
Main
Theo Saidden as Theo, a teenager going by the moniker, 'Superwog', he spends much of his time aggravating his Dad or hatching schemes with Johnny
Nathan Saidden as Johnny, Theo's best friend, an idiot savant, attempting to be the voice of reason at times
Nathan Saidden as Dad
Theo Saidden as Mum
Sasha Sutton as Max, who plays straight man to Theo and Johnny's antics, eventually becoming a police officer before they get him fired
After an explosive argument with his Dad, Superwog leaves home to apply for a job at his local fast food restaurant, and brings his best mate Johnny with him. Meanwhile, Superwog's parents go to a marriage counselor in hopes of mending their broken relationship.
1
"Breaking Dad"
Theodore Saidden
Theodore & Nathan Saidden
9 October 2018 (2018-10-09)
n/a
After a physical altercation between him and his Dad, Superwog talks to a school counselor, and gets relocated to a temporary foster family, while they send his Dad to get assessed by child welfare services.
Whilst renovating their bathroom, Superwog and his dad discover a hidden letter in the walls; an old letter from a soldier regarding the location of buried treasure, meant to help finance his family's lifestyle after his death. Superwog and his Dad then race to the location to obtain the treasure.
The final exam is coming up soon, and Superwog has to find a way to pass it. Meanwhile, Superwog's Dad is admitted to the hospital after suffering a heart attack, following a heated argument with his son.
Superwog and Johnny are having trouble finding a date to take to the formal. Meanwhile, Superwog’s Dad struggles to try and win back his wife after a misunderstanding.
5
"The Power Trip"
Theodore Saidden
Theodore & Nathan Saidden
6 November 2018 (2018-11-06)
n/a
Johnny helps Superwog start mining Bitcoin in his house. However, due to the insanely high amounts of power the computers are using, this costs the Superwog family thousands of dollars in bills. Refusing to pay the expsensive bill, the house goes without power, forcing Superwog to find another location to mine Bitcoin, whilst his Dad has to figure out another way to generate electricity.
Superwog and Johnny decide to go visit an abandoned rail yard, but they get knocked out by toxic gas, and wake up in the future, where the world's in the midst of a zombie apocalypse, and they are among the last few survivors on the planet.
Superwog’s Dad attempts to stop his neighbour from parking outside his house, whilst his son borrows his car for a driver's test, which forces his Dad to find other ways to block his neighbour from parking in the spot.
2
"The Lawsuit"
Theodore Saidden
Theodore & Nathan Saidden
13 June 2021 (2021-06-13)
Superwog's Dad files a lawsuit against his local supermarket after they accuse him of theft, while Superwog bumps into an old friend from primary school.
3
"The Magpie"
Theodore Saidden
Theodore & Nathan Saidden
13 June 2021 (2021-06-13)
Superwog and Johnny have a dilemma with a protective magpie, while Superwog's Dad rushes to stock up on cheap petrol following a record low drop in the price of it.
4
"Something Fishy"
Theodore Saidden
Theodore & Nathan Saidden
13 June 2021 (2021-06-13)
Superwog helps an old Swedish widow, but begins to discover strange things about her, whilst Superwog's Dad and his father-in-law go head-to-head in trying to catch the bigger fish.
5
"The Lump"
Theodore Saidden
Theodore & Nathan Saidden
13 June 2021 (2021-06-13)
Superwog finds out he has a lump on his body, and spirals into madness after turning to the Internet for help, whilst his Dad competes with his father-in-law in a game of table tennis.
6
"21 Jump Ya"
Theodore Saidden
Theodore & Nathan Saidden
13 June 2021 (2021-06-13)
Superwog and Johnny get arrested by the police for selling fake sneakers online, but once they're apprehended, the authorities decide to instead send the duo undercover to find the mastermind behind the entire fake sneaker organisation.
