Michaela Coel is back gracing the small screen with another powerful, thought-provoking series called I May Destroy You.
Loosely based on Michaela’s own personal experience with sexual assault, I May Destroy You follows Arabella, a budding novelist who’s on a tight deadline. To rid herself of writer’s block, she decides to have a night out with friends. The next morning, she realizes she has no recollection of the night’s events, only to discover she’d been drugged and raped.
The new drama series on HBO delves into the psychological realness and raw emotional journey one goes through in the aftermath of sexual assault. I May Destroy You marks Coel’s real first time in the driver’s seat. A show entirely of her own making; she is its showrunner, director, star, and writer.
Michaela Coel first started pitching the series in the spring of 2017, according to Vulture, and she was this close to signing a million-dollar deal with Netflix but changed her mind after making a startling discovery: she wouldn’t be entitled to any percentage of the copyright. She also cut ties with her U.S. talent agency, CAA, after she learned the company would be making a cut from the show.
