Susan Wokoma has joined the cast of Wahala, the ’s new six-part thriller adapted by Theresa Ikoko from Nikki May’s debut novel. The series, made by Firebird Pictures for iPlayer and One, also stars Adelayo Adedayo, Cush Jumbo, Deborah Ayorinde and Genevieve Nnaji.
Wahala follows four Nigerian-British women in their thirties as they navigate careers, love and family in present-day London, while the story also moves back to their childhood homes, where danger and mystery abound. The drama is billed as a gripping and surprising six-part thriller, with dark secrets and even darker pasts threatening to shatter their lives.
Wokoma plays Ronke, while Adedayo plays Simi, Jumbo plays Boo and Ayorinde plays Isobel. Nnaji joins the female-led cast in a series listed as 6x60, with Leonora Lonsdale, Ikoko and Remi Weekes among the directors and Ado Yoshizaki Cassuto producing.
The casting announcement lands as filming begins on the project, giving the adaptation its first full on-screen lineup after Ikoko’s scripts drew together a cast the described as a strong fit for the material. Lindsay Salt said the scripts were “an absolute joy” and “riveting, full of rich and complex characters,” while Elizabeth Kilgarrif said the show promises to be “fantastically entertaining, gripping and epic.”
For Wokoma, the role is a direct nod to a writer she has long admired. She said she was a long fan of Ikoko and her “exquisite writing,” called it an honour to be part of the Wahala team and said she was excited to bring Nikki May’s world to life alongside “three of this country’s most outstanding actresses.” Ikoko said she could not wait to bring the story to life with the cast, directors and crew, and the series now has the ingredients to turn a celebrated novel into a high-stakes screen drama.
With filming under way, Wahala has moved from casting news to production, and the key test now is whether the adaptation can capture both the intimacy of friendship and the menace threaded through May’s story. The has set out a clear wager: a female-led thriller with a well-known cast, a strong literary base and enough mystery to keep viewers watching all six episodes.
