Orange Wednesdays BAFTA Rising Star award winner Adam Deacon steps into another gritty urban tale. “Payback Season”, Danny Donnelly’s directorial debut, is the story of a football star who escapes life on a council estate only to be pulled back by his past.

Deacon (“Anuvahood”, “Shank”, “Bonded by Blood”) plays Jerome Davies, who struggles to deal with his fame and still hold onto his roots, a theme that Deacon should be acquainted with.

Davies comes to realise that the streets will feed on you long after you have left them behind. The film focuses on the tension between Davies and Baron, played by David Ajala (“The Dark Knight”, “Adulthood”), who represents the life Davies tries to leave behind.

Davies’ past drags him down as Baron refuses to let him forget the hood they grew up in. The conflict between Davies and Baron comes to a brutal conclusion as Davies sinks deeper into the life he is desperate to escape from.

Donnelly’s urban thriller explores the price of fame and the envy lurking behind stardom. Blackmail, violence and extortion are at the heart of the story and highlight the conflicting nature of both the worlds Davies is a part of.

Familiar to the stable of urban British film making, Deacon shows another side to his range in this thriller. The film also stars Nichola Burley (“Streetdance 3D”), Anna Popplewell (“Chronicles of Narnia”), Leo Gregory (“Stoned”, “Menace”) and Sir Geoff Hurst, legendary England footballer, as Davies’ agent Adam Aveley.

The film is due for general release on 9th March.
 

By Oran Blackwood