Netflix's New 'Umbrella Academy' Podcast Is Full Of Behind-The-Scenes Deets

The Umbrella Academy's new season spent its first few days trending number one on Netflix in the U.S., making it the hit de jour on the streamer. The series, based on the comics written by Gerard Way and illustrator/co-creator Gabriel Ba, is the most off-the-wall superhero story Netflix has adapted so far. But after spending two seasons with the Hargreeves siblings, fans are probably curious about what inspired Way to create this series in the first place. That's where Netflix's new Umbrella Academy podcast comes in.

Doing supplementary podcasts for hit TV series is nothing new, but it wasn't until HBO's Chernobyl that they became part of the mainstream. Since then, "official" podcasts have been developed for hit shows. The Umbrella Academy is the latest series to get an official podcast covering what inspired the material, stories of the making of the show, and all those tiny details viewers may have missed on the first watch.

Netflix introduced its accompanying podcast Behind The Scenes in the summer of 2019, launching on the back of Stranger Things 3 with a four-episode series. The show returned in December for Behind The Scenes: The Witcher and ran five episodes, including an entire installment dedicated to the show's soundtrack.

Now, Behind The Scenes: The Umbrella Academy is here, with a 10-minute clip of the opening episode on YouTube for fans to sample.

Here's the podcast's synopsis:

Behind the Scenes is back, and this season, we’re time traveling with the Umbrella Academy. Creator Gerard Way, of My Chemical Romance, illustrator/co-creator Gabriel Ba, and showrunner Steve Blackman walk us through how this dysfunctional family of anti-heroes ended up on our screens.

Like Netflix's previous installments, host Brandon Jenkins digs into the history of the franchise, by sitting down with the creatives who made it possible. The clip above is part of his interview with Way in the podcast's first episode, "A Dysfunctional Family Show."

Way is best known not for his comics, but his role in the band My Chemical Romance. Most fans might assume this "comic book stuff" was something that came later. But in the interview, Way reveals he was actually on his way to a comics career (he has a college degree in it) when his plans were derailed by music.

To listen to the rest of the episode (and to check out coverage of The Witcher and Stranger Things), head over to Behind The Scenes' page, where there are links to download from the usual podcast haunts.