When an 14-year-old Black girl transfers to her mother’s elite alma mater, she uncovers a secret society sacrificing students’ passions in the name of "Black Excellence," forcing her to risk everything to save a gifted boy — only to inherit his cursed legacy.

SYNOPSIS:

When 11-year-old Tréa Willis transfers with her family to Portland’s prestigious Pernicious Pride Middle School, she expects a shot at opportunity, legacy, and friendship. Instead, she finds herself ensnared in the sinister grip of the Black Excellence Group (B.E.G.)—a secret society masquerading as an elite program for gifted Black students.

At first, the promise of belonging and recognition is intoxicating: crimson uniforms, haunting choir rituals, and whispers of sacrifice tied to the school’s unsettling murals of Black icons like Harriet Tubman and Dr. King. But when Tréa befriends Kenny, a prodigy on the cusp of initiation, she discovers the group’s rituals strip children of their individuality—turning brilliance into obedience. Determined to protect him, she’s thrust into a dangerous game against the school’s enigmatic leaders, Principal Pointset and Ms. Rosemary, who cloak indoctrination under the banner of cultural pride and discipline.

The pilot balances coming-of-age wonder with social-horror unease, weaving supernatural allegory with urgent commentary on respectability politics, generational pressure, and the cost of “excellence” in Black America. Inspired by personal experience and the expectations passed from Black parents to their children, Black Excellence makes the familiar terrain of middle school both relatable and terrifying.

Fresh, socially resonant, and tapping into today’s conversations about education, assimilation, and identity, the series invites fans of Stranger Things, Them, and Snowfall to a world where legacy is power—and survival means redefining what it means to be “excellent.”

BLACK EXCELLENCE