Adam Deacon, star of gritty cult thriller Kidulthood – and subsequently Adult and Anuvahood– and recent BAFTA Rising Star award winner, sat down with Wonderland just as his March feature Payback Season hits the shelves in Digital Versatile Disk form.
Tell me about your role in Payback Season?
I was going through a stage when I was getting loads of the same scripts in the post and this one was different. It was just a regular kind of guy, a good character rather than a drug dealing loud, hype character. It’s very different to Anuvahood that I just finished with Femi [Oyeniran] and I just wanted a change and that’s why it kind of appealed to me; he was quite a different character.
There’s a cameo from Geoff Hurst in it…
It was a bonus, I didn’t know when I went to film it that he’d be involved. It was really nice to be around a legend, he’s a really nice guy. Really nice to be around, he’s a humble guy.
How did it feel winning the BAFTA Rising Star Award in February?
It was amazing it felt really surreal. It felt like finally, I’ve been acting since I was twelve years old. You know getting that level of support from the community but not really from the mainstream. It felt really nice to be recognised. Thank you to everyone that voted, it was amazing.
Victim is coming out this month; tell me about your role in it.
I know Mike Maris and Ashley [Chin] the writers. They called me up and asked if I could do a quick cameo in it. It wasn’t something I really thought too much about more like a mate calling up. It was quite a nice little cameo part – it’s quite a nice little comedy moment. I haven’t actually seen the film, I wish Michael and Ashley the best with this one.
Are you surprised that the ‘hood series has gained such a strong cult following?
Kidulthood was one of the first authentic street films of the time. You had Bullet Boy before that, but before Bullet Boy there wasn’t anything else. I worked really hard myself to make it authentic. I felt that there was a real connection between the people and the film.
It feels like a modern day classic.
I felt really proud, I worked so hard to change up that film, get the right music in, change up the dialogue, make sure it was authentic. I felt really proud, even though it wasn’t my film I was very hands-on; it felt a real achievement that one.
How is your music career coming along?
Yeah I’ve been in the studio loads. The last two weeks I’ve been in the studio every day. I’ve got a mixtape I’m looking to put out at the end of June. I’ve got a lot to say right now, so that’s all coming into place.
You’ve struggled in the past with typecasting – how has winning the BAFTA changed things for you?
It opens up a lot more doors and puts me in a very privileged position. Anuvahood did very well, it meant I’m getting the chance to go off and write new films, new ideas. I’ve got a lot of new ideas going around in my head – sometimes it’s probably too many ideas. I have to work out what I want to do, but I feel very privileged right now to be in the position I am. I just finished a documentary with the BBC.
What was that?
It’s called Can We Trust the Police? It comes out this month; it’s about people’s perceptions of the police. It’s quite a personal story for me because one of my friends was attacked [by police-people] seven years ago – it was an identity incident and he was affected by that.
Payback Season is out now on DVD and Blu-ray through Revolver Entertainment.
Words: Jack Mills