Stormzy takes first lead acting role as he launches film production company
12 June 2025, 10:22 | Updated: 12 June 2025, 12:00
UK rapper Stormzy has taken a lead role in a short film premiering on YouTube, alongside launching his own production company.
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Stormzy has ventured into the film industry with a lead role, featuring as the star of a short film created by his new production company #Merky Films in association with Apple.
The film, Big Man, presents Stormzy as an ex-rapper who is "navigating a restless and uncertain chapter of his life".
The character Tenzman, stars in the YouTube film sporting a wig, and features alongside child actors Klevis Brahja and Jaydon Eastman.
Directed by Oscar winner Aneil Karia, the film is set to be released on 18 June.
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Big Man is said to blend “humour, vulnerability and quiet transformation”, according to the team behind it, who added “the film thoughtfully explores themes of reconnecting with your younger self and embracing gratitude”.
“It’s a natural next step for everything we do at #Merky,” Stormzy added. “Sharing our stories, spotlighting important voices and making room for those who deserve to be seen and heard.”
It's not Stormzy's first venture outside the music industry: he has experience in grant-giving, literature and sport – with a book imprint (#Merky Books, which is part of Penguin Random House), #Merky FC in collaboration with Adidas, and his own foundation.
The rapper, whose real name is Michael Ebenazer Kwadjo Omari Owuo Jr, said that the film company is something he has “been dreaming about for ages”, calling it a space for “powerful British stories and a solid home for fresh, unexpected art”.
He said: “I hope you love our first project, Big Man, as much as we loved making it. For me, it’s all about the joy, spirit and fearless energy of youth – that feeling like life is one big adventure and the world’s your playground. I hope it inspires you to dream bigger, live louder and hold on to that unapologetic energy that comes with being young.”
#Merky Films is also developing a drama series and what it is calling “a seminal biopic that promises to leave a lasting cultural mark”, although the subject of the film is to be confirmed.The company is also working on what it calls “thought-provoking documentaries”, a “bold new animation project” and a “boundary-pushing, new-age mockumentary”.
