The Sunday Mail
Andrew Moyo
THE year 2020 is one that many would want to quickly forget as it produced the worst global pandemic perhaps since the Spanish Flu of 1918.
It is a year that saw countries introduce lockdowns and travel restrictions to combat the growing health crisis.
But, for United States-based actor Tongayi Arnold Chirisa, it was a year that would see his career shoot through the roof with numerous roles on major productions coming his way.
“To be honest, 2020 was one of the busiest years in my career. I had two films coming out back-to-back during the pandemic and I was also shooting ‘Another Life’ that’s on Netflix right now, so if you haven’t seen it, please check it out,” said Chirisa in an exclusive interview with The Sunday Mail Society from his US base.
“Another Life” is an American science-fiction streaming television drama series created by Aaron Martin, which premièred on Netflix on July 25, 2019, with the second season being released on the 15th of this month.
The series stars Katee Sackhoff, Selma Blair, Justin Chatwin, Samuel Anderson, Elizabeth Ludlow, Blu Hunt and A.J. Rivera, to name just a few, with Chirisa joining the cast for the second season.
While the current season only came out a few days ago, filming started last year.
Chirisa, who plays Richard Ncube, a military strategist, says he auditioned for the part before the pandemic struck and had already started filming.
“I auditioned for the role before the pandemic struck and we had started filming, but had to stop production because of Covid-19, and only resumed in the latter half of 2020.”
While they were filming the series, other productions that he stared in were also being released, with the likes of “Palm Springs” and “Antebellum” making headlines.
“Palm Springs” went on to win several awards, including ACE Eddie Awards, Critics’ Choice Movie Awards, Hollywood Critics Association and the Independent Spirit Awards.
The film also made it to the Golden Globe Awards in the Best Motion Picture — Musical or Comedy and Best Actor in the Motion Picture.
“‘Palm Springs’ was one of those rare gems during the pandemic and I think it gave people a sense of escapism, a good laugh in a dire situation when the world was facing uncertainty of what this coronavirus was.
“It was great to have a lot of eyes on the picture as it introduced me to a lot more people in terms of Andy Samberg’s fandom.
“It’s a great opportunity to be a part of a film that transcends time. It was really good for me to be introduced to another group of people that may have never seen my work and ‘The Golden Globe’ was just a great nod on an otherwise fantastic picture that we did,” said Chirisa.
While still basking in the exploits of the more recent release, his fans will also be seeing him in another big production, “Women of the Movement”, an upcoming American six-episode historical drama limited television series set to premiere on ABC on January 6 next year.
Some of the names on the production credits include Jay-Z, Will Smith, Gina Maria Prince-Bythewood and James Lassiter.
“I have a couple of projects that are coming out in the near future.
“There is a mini-series coming out in January on the ABC network and the name of this project is called ‘Women of the Movement’, which centres on Emmet Till, a young boy from Chicago who was murdered in Mississippi in 1955, with his death becoming a national headline highlighting the racism in the South during that time.
“There is also a beautiful romantic comedy called ‘Courting Anati’ and while I have no release dates yet, I am looking forward to that,” he said.
While it would seem as if some of his roles are less significant than others, the actor pointed out that every role he gets is just as important.
“Every project that I do is a highlight, it is a stepping stone and an opportunity to show myself.
“Every single character that you play is challenging but that’s the rewarding part, to find out who they are and the complexities that they come with. All productions that I have done are all significant and for that I am grateful.”
Chirisa has no intention of just being in front of the camera as he is also developing his own scripts.
“There are a couple of projects that I have written and I am very excited to see what we can do with them.”
One of the projects he is working on is a period piece which is set in Zimbabwe in the 1970s.
“There is one called ‘The Non-Believer’s Journey’, which is based on a book by Stanley Nyamupfukudza that was written in the 70s. I am currently developing that book into a script, so, hopefully, soon enough we will be able to come and film it in Zimbabwe.”
