Tag: actors

Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù on James Bond rumours: ‘It’s the pinnacle of action roles’

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With the release of No Time to Die, Daniel Craig has played James Bond for the last time – and now everyone is wondering who his successor as 007 might be.

Asked whether he’d be interested in the role, Gangs of London star Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù smiles – it’s clearly not the first time the idea has been put to him. (At time of writing, Dìrísù is currently 16/1 odds to star as the secret agent next.)

“That question is going around a lot more recently, because No Time to Die has just come out,” he said while promoting new film Mothering Sunday. “[It] is an excellent film, I was really fortunate to get to go to the premiere of it, it was such a grand occasion.

“I really enjoy the rough and tumble of action sequences, and I try to do all of my own stunts. I think that the role of James Bond – wow – is the pinnacle of those things, you know?”

And, finally, part three! I asked Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù how he feels about being attached to James Bond, as well as any other roles/genres he’d like to play across his career. (He quite wants to do a sci-fi, which would be neat.)

I’ll be interested to see if he does end up playing Bond – I definitely got the sense that he knew more than he was telling me, he’d clearly met Barbara Broccoli before. We shall see…!

You can find more of my interviews here, and follow me on twitter @morelandwriter. If you enjoyed reading this piece – or if you didn’t – perhaps consider leaving a tip on ko-fi?

Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù on making Gangs of London Series 2 during the pandemic

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Production on Gangs of London season two – the follow-up to Sky Atlantic’s biggest ever original drama launch – is currently underway, with the crime drama due to return in 2022. Filming the ambitious second series has proven logistically complicated, however, because of the safety precautions needed to film during the ongoing pandemic. (Earlier this year, production halted on the Sky drama for 10 days after a crew member tested positive for coronavirus.)

How has star Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù found it, making the series under such challenging circumstances?

“It was fantastic to be back at work,” said Dìrísù while promoting new film Mothering Sunday. “And also to have the attitude that we were going to overcome this and create something beautiful.”

“I don’t think we would have been able to start the second season of Gangs of London when we were shooting Mothering Sunday,” he explained. “There was too much that we needed to do in terms of distancing that we couldn’t have a massive [production].”

Part two! Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù told me all about the particular demands of shooting an action-heavy show like Gangs of London during the ongoing pandemic – certainly sounds like quite a logistical headache. Feels like something that’d be interesting to look into more, not just on Gangs of London but television in general. Hmm.

You can find more of my interviews here, and follow me on twitter @morelandwriter. If you enjoyed reading this piece – or if you didn’t – perhaps consider leaving a tip on ko-fi?