Having waited almost three years for new Top Boy, the odds are good that the crime drama’s loyal fanbase will have already binge-watched their way through all eight episodes that launched on Netflix on Friday, 18th March.
With a more international feel that took the story to Spain and Morocco as Dushane’s drug empire expanded, the latest batch of episodes saw the show on absolutely storming form – read our Top Boy review for our full verdict.
Following a tense and action-packed finale, the fourth season delivered a huge twist in its closing scenes which, to put it mildly, leaves lead characters Dushane (Ashley Walters) and Sully (Kane Robinson) in an interesting position moving forward!
But what exactly will happen next? And when can fans expect more Top Boy to drop? Here’s all the latest news on the future of the acclaimed series.
Will there be a Top Boy season 5?
Having originally aired on Channel 4 for two series between 2011 and 2013, Top Boy was officially revived by Netflix in 2017, with the streaming service announcing in November of that year that it had ordered a new season of 10 episodes.
Those new episodes launched on 13th September 2019, with Netflix confirming a second batch of new episodes a little over five months later – on 26th February, 2020.
The service is yet to announce if it will commission another season, but given the popularity of the previous two and the cliffhanger ending to to the latest season, it’s a safe bet that we haven’t seen the last of Dushane and Sully.
When would a potential Top Boy season 5 be released?
The good news is that if a fifth season of Top Boy is green-lit, the wait for new episodes shouldn’t be as lengthy as fans have had to endure lately.
The fourth season of the show was originally set to begin filming in spring 2020, but a production shutdown enforced by the COVID-19 pandemic meant that production had to be pushed until much later in the year – with series leads Walters and Robinson confirming they had begun filming in December.
The delay in filming led to a gap of 30 months between seasons, but if Netflix is quick to commission more Top Boy, it’s feasible that the show could be back in front of the cameras much sooner and back on our screens by late 2023.
Who could appear in the Top Boy season 5 cast?
Of the cast of series regulars, we’d expect the below to all be back for more should Top Boy return:
- Ashley Walters as Dushane
- Kane Robinson as Sully
- Jasmine Jobson as Jaq
- Simbi Ajikawo (‘Little Simz’) as Shelley
- Saffron Hocking as Lauryn
It’s also probable we’ll see more of No-Lay as Mandy and Adwoa Aboah as Becks, while Lisa Dwan might well return as Lizzie – though now she’s in Dushane’s crosshairs, she might not be sticking around for long – and it’s also possible that Erin Kellyman might reappear as Dushane’s niece Pebbles.
Following the shock cliffhanger to the latest season, it seems we’ve seen the last of Micheal Ward as Jamie – a major player across the previous two seasons – and it remains to be seen how Jamie’s brothers Aaron and Stefan – played by Hope Ikpoku Jr. and Araloyin Oshunremi – might factor into any future episodes following his exit.
Kadeem Ramsay won’t be returning as Kit either, with Jamie having executed his treacherous no. 2 just prior to his own demise, while Ats’ mother Amma (Jolade Obasola) was apparently deported from the UK early in the fourth season so again seems unlikely to resurface.
Since the Channel 4 days, Top Boy fans have remained eager to find out what happened to Ra’Nell (Malcolm Kamulete), who featured heavily in the show’s first two seasons but didn’t return for the Netflix relaunch – but it doesn’t sound as though he’ll be making a comeback any time soon, with Ashley Walters telling RadioTimes.com that there are no plans for Ra’Nell to factor back into the story.
It’s feasible that Ra’Nell’s old friend Gem (Giacomo Mancini) could appear again in future though – another major character from the show’s early days, he did appear briefly in the first season produced on Netflix so the door for that character to return appears to be open.
What could happen in Top Boy season 5?
Though a fifth season isn’t official yet, the latest season of Top Boy on Netflix leaves a number of story threads dangling which could be followed up in any future outings.
Most obviously, any new season would have to explore the aftermath of Sully’s murder of Jamie. With Dushane having told Sully that he was grooming Jamie to be his successor, will Sully’s actions reignite aggressions between the two old friends? And how will Jamie’s brothers react to the brutal slaying? Will Stef want revenge? Is studious Aaron, who always resisted being dragged into Jamie’s criminal style, now doomed to follow in his brother’s footsteps?
Though the show’s latest antagonist, Liverpool gangster Curtis (Howard Charles), didn’t make it out of the fourth season alive, the rest of his gang – including Curtis’ vicious sister – escaped, with Sully warning them never to return to London. Will they heed this advice, or will they be back to seek retribution on pregnant Lauryn (Saffron Hocking) and her sister Jaq (Jasmine Jobson)?
Finally, a running thread throughout the latest season that never quite paid off involved Dushane’s health, with the drug kingpin suffering what appeared to be panic attacks. This seems certain to be explored more if Top Boy returns – and we can’t imagine Sully’s actions will have done wonders for Dushane’s stress levels…
Read our full explainer on the Top Boy season 4 ending and how it sets up a potentially explosive fifth season.
Read more about Top Boy:
Top Boy is streaming now on Netflix – visit our guide to the best series on Netflix, read more of our Drama coverage or find something to watch now with our TV Guide.
