Jamaican-born model turned actor Michael Ward, stars in the new film Lover’s Rock, an official Cannes selection for 2020. Ward and co-star Amarah-Jae St. Aubyn (her screen debut) find young love and experience the rise of “romantic reggae” in the UK that influenced British bands such as The Clash, Culture Club, Police, and UB40. The film explores the social, political, and racial tensions of the period.
Ward is perhaps best known for his role in the 2019 Netflix reboot of Top Boy, his breakout role that earned him a BAFTA Rising Star Award this year. In 2019 he was also cast as Marco in Blue Story, a London gang drama, and he has appeared in Brotherhood and The A List.
Lover’s Rock co-writer, Sir Steven Rodney McQueen of critically acclaimed 12 Years a Slave, is also of Caribbean descent. This year he has two Cannes Film Festival official selections. He was one of only two black filmmakers among more than 50 directors and he dedicated both films to George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter movement against racism.
