Drake has helped shine a light on Top Boy – he’s a big fan
It has been six years since Top Boy lit up our screens – now it’s back with a new season thanks to Netflix. Stars Ashley Walters and Kane Robinson, talk to
TOP BOY is a hard-hitting crime drama series set on the fictional Summerhouse housing estate in Hackney, East London, following the lives of a group of people involved in drug dealing and street gangs.
In the original series, lead character Dushane, played by Ashley Walters, rose to be the kingpin in this murky world.
Although storylines had been prepared for a third series, Channel 4 decided not to go ahead.
Canadian rapper Drake posted on Instagram that he was a big fan of the show and helped get the ball rolling on its revival. He is now executive producer of the new 10-part series running on Netflix.
Top Boy is back – did you foresee its return?
KANE: I didn’t, to be honest. We all wanted it back but it’s a weird one because I thought after every year the talk would die down and it just didn’t, it just grew.
So, yeah, it was a welcome call, and I know it was something Ash was pushing for as well, so we were both excited about it.
ASHLEY: It’s been a long time coming but I think the time passed has been perfect. It’s one of those things where I would have wanted it to come back straight away but, if you think about it now, the timing is perfect for the culture and what we’re going through as people in the country just in general.
You’ve moved from Channel 4 to Netflix. What will the streaming platform do for the show?
We were able to do a lot more on screen than we could have even with Channel 4. Channel 4 was a risky channel anyway but, with Netflix, you have a lot of space to push the boundaries.
One of the main things that Netflix gave us, which I know was always (writer) Ronan’s dream, was 10 episodes.
It’s next level for this show because we get to explore characters further, dig a little bit deeper and start pulling back the layers.
That was exciting for me as an actor because you get to show more of your character and spend time with them away from the street life; in the home, family life, that kind of stuff.
How does it feel to have Drake on board, too?
Like Kane said, I was like, ‘Yo, when are we putting this show back on?’ And they were like, ‘No, it’s not going to happen, Ashley’.
So waking up and seeing Drake had put up the post was brilliant for us; we knew that it had gone on Netflix, but I didn’t understand what the difference would be.
Obviously the difference was that the show was now international.
Drake has helped to shine a light on it – but, first and foremost, he’s a big fan.
How has Dushane and Sully’s relationship developed this season?
From a Sully point of view, he’s spent some time in jail and, during that four years, he’s realised that the only person that’s really been there for him is Jason.
With Dushane it was, ‘Yo, where were you?’ so, when we finally meet, it’s like, ‘Hang on, you only care about me when you want something’.
That’s kind of in his mind, so he is out to make his own way in this world and not be under Dushane.
Dushane has been out in Jamaica since the last time you saw him, laying low. He’s depressed because, if you know how it is at the top and you lose it, that’s one of the worst positions you could be in.
So his plan is to lie low, create a new life for himself, but he’s constantly reminded of what he had and what he doesn’t have any more.
And that – without giving away the story – helps him to create a situation where he needs to go back.
How important is it to not glamorise the characters’ lives – but instead show both sides of the coin?
It’s important to show who we are and why we make the decisions we make, but then the consequences of those decisions.
This is not a show that glamorises violence. It’s a show for entertainment but it can’t just be one-sided. It can’t just look like you sell drugs and everyone just gets rich and there are no problems.
This is a world filled with problems and so it’s about how people deal with those problems.
Do you have much of a hand in the scripts?
We have an opinion and because we’ve done this for a while now – in terms of Top Boy – they welcome it.
Specifically on dialogue, Ronan is always like, ‘Look, I know I’m young, I didn’t grow up here’, and we don’t even know how kids are talking right now, so he always welcomes dialogue changes.
The shows that I do where there’s no pushing, pulling, debates, sometimes arguments, whatever it may be, are terrible shows.
It takes the team to make this what it is; we all have opinions and we have to come together and find a compromise.
We’re representing lives here and we have a duty to represent those stories and those characters properly.
By any means necessary, we have to get to the truth.
Why do you think Top Boy has remained so relevant?
It hasn’t been topped. It’s one of those things, it’s always remained like a classic, because there’s not been a TV show after that’s focused on the same genre and the same idea and has been better than Top Boy. So that’s always stood us in good stead.
But our formula, the mixture of experienced actors with non-working actors and the way our casting directors cast people, that all ties into the USP of the show.
Is there a fourth season on the cards?
We haven’t had the OK yet. To some people it might not be that great, but I think we’ve done an amazing job.
People should just focus on this season and enjoy it as much as they can.
There are 10 episodes to sink your teeth in to and there are a lot of new characters as well, so hopefully if we get all the love and everyone views it, they’ll be knocking our door down. Top Boy, is on Netflix now.