Riches star CJ Beckford: ‘This show is special - normally we only see one version of black London on screen’
Forget kitsch Eighties shows like Dallas and Dynasty, family dramas have become the pinnacle of glossy high-end TV, spearheaded by the wildly successful US comedy-drama Succession. Now Britain has its answer to the hit US show with Riches, not that one of its stars would know.
CJ Beckford has never seen Succession, “I’ve only heard that it’s amazing, so the fact that Riches is being compared to it is great.” From what little he has seen, however, he believes Riches – one of the flagship shows on ITVX, the broadcaster’s new streaming service – is different: “It owns its own space.”
The 31-year-old actor has appeared at the National Theatre and on the BBC, but his role as Andre in this glossy, high-stakes drama is his biggest one yet. “I’m just living the dream,” he says. “When I’m on set, my inner child just comes out – it doesn’t feel like work at all.”
Riches is the brainchild of Londoner Abby Ajayi, a writer producer on How to Get Away with Murder and Inventing Anna. It tells the story of a self-made, ultra-wealthy British-Nigerian family who have built their fortunes from black hair empire Flair and Glory. When the patriarch dies (in the first 10 minutes) the family is shaken up by the arrival of his estranged American children, and a war for control of the business empire erupts.
Ajayi called Riches a “love letter to black London” and Beckford agrees. “It means so much to me to be part of a show like this,” he says, speaking on Zoom from his flat in Holborn. “I’ve lived in London my whole life, and I feel like often we only see one version of London – and black London – portrayed, so this show is really special.”
He adds, “These are the kind of shows you always see do so well in America, but this is about a black, wealthy, immigrant family in London.”
Beckford, who grew up in Holborn as an only child to a single mother, trained at the Anna Scher performing arts school in Islington, whose alumni includes Oscar-winning actor Daniel Kaluuya. While studying marketing at the University of Westminster, he picked up shifts working as an extra on various sets, before landing his first credit in the Debenhams 2017 Christmas advert.
He credits his marketing background with helping him prepare for the role of Andre in Riches, Flair and Glory’s elusive and flirtatious chief financial officer. Andre is a far cry from Beckford’s most recent credits – that of Michael in the National Theatre’s stage adaptation of Andrea Levy’s Small Island, and Gary in the BBC’s Sitting in Limbo, both of which tell the frequently traumatic stories of the Windrush generation in the UK.
“This was the first role I’ve done where I could just have fun doing something I love,” he says. “It’s not that these [Windrush] stories aren’t important – I’m of Caribbean descent and my family went through this too. But something I really enjoyed about Riches is that when I first read the script I didn’t think, ‘Oh this is all about being black.’ Even though it’s centred around a black hair brand, it’s really just about human beings who happen to be black.”
This experience of being typecast is one that often arises in discussions of the roles available to black actors in the UK compared to the US. The likes of Idris Elba, Letitia Wright and John Boyega – all of whom have been part of the exodus across the pond – have spoken about the need to create three-dimensional opportunities for black actors in the UK.
“When I first started out in the industry, I definitely wanted to go to the States,” Beckford says, but it was a bittersweet desire. “I was born here, so I really wanted to represent the UK and show the black talent we have, so that America can look to us rather than pretending to fit into their world. But I just felt like more roles in the States were fitting to me.”
Ajayi has suggested that there is a black British renaissance threatening to buck this trend – Beckford is unsure. “It’s changing slowly,” he says. “We’ve got new streaming platforms like Netflix, Amazon, Disney+ and great writers like Abby, and black British producers creating great UK shows. But if actors want to go to the States, if they feel like that’s the best thing for their career, they should do that.”
As well as family dramas, another trend on big and small screens are projects – like White Lotus and Triangle of Sadness (though Beckford hasn’t seen those either) – that satirise the super-rich. Whether Riches falls into this category of critiquing the foibles of the ultra-wealthy in a particularly fraught economic climate, or is an aspirational tale of the grit and determination of an immigrant family, is unclear from the first few episodes. Perhaps, as Beckford notes, it is a love-hate mixture of both.
“It’s a little glimpse of how a certain percentage of rich people live. It sheds a light on the super-rich and what money can do to you,” he says. “But I also think these dynamics exist in all families, rich and poor. You can have spoiled children, and arguments and feuds. It’s also just part of being human.”
Sensing that Beckford is somewhat off-the-grid when it comes to popular culture, it is no surprise to learn that he’s not active on any social media platforms.
“I couldn’t tell you how long ago I deleted my socials, maybe six months, a year ago, I’m not sure,” he says. “One day I just wanted a break and then I was like: ‘Oh this is really nice!’ I just felt free, not pressured by what other people are doing.”
In an environment where creatives are pressured to constantly self-promote, it is perhaps a bold, old-school decision. But it has worked for him.
“It’s not like I’ll never reactivate my accounts, maybe I will one day. But I prefer to let my work speak for itself,” he smiles. “I’m in it for the work, that’s it.”
Riches is streaming from December 22 on ITVX
