John Boyega is not only starring and producing the highly-anticipated sequel to Attack the Block, but he has also been actively contributing to the story of Attack the Block 2. During an exclusive interview with Collider’s own Christina Radish for the Boyega-led Breaking, the star revealed new details about the sequel, underlining how Attack the Block 2 is moving closer to production.
While Boyega had his breakout role by playing Finn in the Star Wars sequel trilogy, the British actor’s first feature credit comes from 2011’s Attack the Black. The indie horror film stars Boyega as Moses, a gang leader that becomes a local hero once he uses his street smarts to fight against an alien invasion. Besides imagining some of the most unique aliens that ever showed up in a movie, Attack the Black also uses Moses’ background to explore real-life issues such as gentrification and social inequality, underlining how an unfair society leads to young people getting involved with crime.
One decade after Attack the Block’s release, a sequel was confirmed, with Boyega reprising the part of Moses and filmmaker Joe Cornish coming back as writer and director. Boyega was also set to produce the sequel, a job that led him to get directly involved with Attack the Block 2’s story. When asked how he was involved with the scrip, Boyega said:
“This process has been fantastic. The story has actually been presented by myself and Joe Cornish. We’ve collaborated heavily on making a story that makes sense for Moses and the other characters, and the new characters that will be coming up in the sequel too. And then, also, there’s different perspectives in writing it, with Joe having his perspective and me having mine. London has changed so much, in so many different ways, over the years since the first movie. We’re just tryin’ to make sure we explore all of that, while bringing in a whole different vibe to that crazy ass first movie that we made.”
With Boyega helping with the story, Attack the Block 2 sounds even more interesting. While Cornish did an excellent job with the first movie, Boyega’s take on Moses is the emotional heart of Attack the Block, so it’s great to see Boyega taking a more crucial role in the sequel’s development. But when will we be able to watch it? When does Attack the Block 2 begin production? About that, Boyega told us:
“We’re quite close. We’re gettin’ there. Obviously, we don’t wanna release no dates to anybody because we wanna take care of the creative process. We have the main spine of the story, but we’re still in the lab, just making sure the story is right. Story is everything. But it won’t be too long. I’ve given them the drums to speed up the process. Hopefully soon, we’ll have an announcement for when we’ll be around London, messin’ stuff up.”
Boyega also discussed returning to the role of Moses, explaining how the work for the first movie influences the sequel. On that topic, Boyega also revealed the sequel will see an older version of Moses, which means we’ll learn what happened after the heartbreaking ending in which the young man was arrested by the police, even though he saved everybody. In Boyega’s words:
“You do go back and watch the movie again and remember the character. I’ve been back to my old script. I have my old notes to read. And then, also, on top of that, all the material that Joe collected, over the time to create the first movie, in terms of his pitch and everything that was in the bible for Attack the Block, we bring that out of the dusty corners, we blow the dust off, and we get back to work. It’s now about aging the character slightly and seeing where he’s at now.”
Boyega’s next big role is in The Woman King which hits theaters on September 16. Check out The Woman King’s trailer below and look for Christina’s full interview with Boyega soon.
