Meet Micheal Ward, the Top Boy Actor Set to Take Over Our Screens

Born in Jamaica and raised in Romford, Essex, Micheal got his big break when he won a modelling competition to be the face of JD Sports at age 17. "It was insane," he told NME. "I just felt proper young and I was there with all these guys around me who were like six foot plus, crazy tall. I literally felt like a kid."

Originally interested in pursuing a career in football, Micheal explained to NME that the reason he became serious about acting was because of Shakespeare's Macbeth. "We did a modern version at school and I was playing Macduff. It just really sparked something in me: I loved it!"

After admitting to being a huge Top Boy fan when he was growing up, Micheal told NME in November that playing Jamie was his dream role. "I spent eight months filming it and then on the last day of filming, when I realised it was all over, I just started crying. The emotion came over me, I was so proud of what we'd made, of myself, and knowing that my family — and the world — were about to see what I'd just done."

"Obviously when I read it it spoke to me straight away," Micheal told BT of Blue Story. "Initially it wasn't something that I wanted to do because I was afraid of how similar it was to my other role," he said, comparing his role of Marco to that of Jamie in Top Boy. After accepting the role, the actor realised the two characters couldn't be more different.

After starring in Top Boy and Blue Story, Micheal Ward has discovered that his passion lies in dramas that reflect real life. "I'd love to do some Marvel or Star Wars stuff," he told The Guardian. "But I want to tell important stories. Ones that help people understand different walks of life."

On the back of his initial success, Micheal Ward has his sights set on America. "It's one thousand percent what I'm aiming at," he told NME. In regards to his plans for the immediate future, he added, "I'm hoping we'll get confirmation of Top Boy series four soon. But other than that, who knows what the future holds?"