You might already recognise Ashley Madekwe. The 37-year-old British actress has had standout roles in Secret Diary of a Call Girl and the soapy, American drama series Revenge. She’s the girl quietly stealing scenes in films like Drop Dead Gorgeous and Cassandra’s Dream. ‘Ah her,’ you’ll say when you see her. But, once you’ve seen County Lines, you won’t forget her name in a hurry.
The small British film has caused shockwaves since its release late last year and Madekwe’s performance has earned her a BAFTA Best Supporting Actress nomination. The debut of filmmaker Henry Blake, it is a quiet, atmospheric tale of Tyler, a young boy living on a council estate in London who is drawn into illegal drug trafficking within the UK, known as ‘county lines.’ His arc is irretrievably wedded to his exhausted, overworked young mother, Toni, played by Madekwe.
"I had misgivings when I first heard about the film," she admits, zooming me from Vancouver where her husband, Iddo Goldberg, a fellow actor is shooting. "I wondered if it was going to be a glamorised urban drama type scenario and I would have no interest in that. But when I read the script, I was just struck by the rawness and the authenticity."
Madekwe’s initial reluctance was in no small part down to her own experiences with the subject matter. “I definitely recognise the world. I recognise Toni. I saw my mother in elements of Toni and other women that I've grown up around,” she says, of her own council estate upbringing. “My brother was a Black boy growing up in inner city, London, and he has all the disadvantages that come with that. We moved away when I was 14, but we didn't move far enough. He was stuck in that world, in and out of gangs, in and out of trouble with the police. He's been stabbed. And so, when I read the script, it reminded me of him in a way. I had quite an emotional reaction to it.”
It meant the film came with a heady level of responsibility for Madekwe, a desire to do the story justice. “I did show parts of it to my brother,” she says, laughing and impersonating him with a giddy ease. “He was like yeah, it’s really real.”
She was also keen for her character not to become a damaging stereotype. "I didn't want Toni to be this kind of screaming attitude, head snapping, finger snapping caricature," she explains. "I wanted to give her some dignity and to afford her a certain amount of grace."
The role has also undoubtedly been a dream for the actress, who shows a sense of relief at being able to stick her teeth into a part worthy of her RADA education and impressive stage experience. She chews up scenery with ease and breaks your heart throughout – her character alternating skilfully between being frustratingly at fault and gloriously a saviour. She calls it a “dream project” for any actor and has been blown away by the response to the project. “When you champion a small film like that, and it pays off, it just feels all the sweeter,” she beams.
Madekwe has spent the last year in her home in California, on a break between projects. Does she feel that County Lines will thrust her career in a direction it finally deserves?
“You can never control what everybody else thinks," she says. "Revenge was satisfying in that it was a commercial success and felt glamorous. I definitely enjoyed that, but in other ways, it was missing things for me as an artist. With age and growth, your wants and needs change, and mine definitely did,” she continues. “I had a hunger to explore characters and explore projects in a deeper and more meaningful way. It's difficult though. Everybody wants to do the meaningful projects, and there are only so many of them to go around!”
She has noticed a subtle shift in the industry since the resurgence of the BLM protests last summer, which she saw first-hand from her home in California.
“It’s changing incrementally and you cannot overstate the importance of representation and what it means to see yourself represented in film and TV or in the arts in general,” she says. “I think that is really changing now, and not just for Black actors, but Asian actors - everybody. We have all seen how vital visibility is.”
To that end, she would love be to be behind the camera, to be in the room when these stories are made, and to shine a light on those that are overlooked. But for now, she’s waiting for another dream role.
“Lady Macbeth,” she says, without pause, when I ask her what that would be. So, if the London stage is reading – here’s your new leading lady.
County Lines is available to watch now via BFI Player.
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