Exclusive: Jonah and I are opposites – Morris the Actor on ‘Faithless’ role
As is every actor’s dilemma, blending a character role in a show with one’s own personality is no walk in the park, and a handful of thespians can confidently back this up.
Kenyan actor Morris Mwangi, better known as Morris the Actor, can attest to this in relation to his latest role as ‘Jonah’ in the new crime drama series Faithless. As the son of Cain, the underworld kingpin in the show, Jonah depicts a life that is completely opposite of what Morris has lived in all his years having grown up without a father.
In a sit down with Nairobi News, the actor shared a little bit more about his role in the show, which he said has given him the opportunity to experience a life that’s different from his own. The actor also shares how blending his personality with that of his character is nothing short of exhilarating.
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“In Faithless I play the character Jonah, the son of Cain. It’s funny because Jonah and I are literally water and oil. We do not agree on so many things. So, in preparation for this character it was really more or less my imagination because I didn’t grow up with my father at all so I don’t know what that’s like,” Morris shared.
Seeing as the crime genre is known for its intense and gritty storytelling, Morris also talked about his approach to portraying the dark and sometimes morally ambiguous aspects of his character, all the while still maintaining the audience’s empathy and engagement.
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“There are so many things that set Jonah and me apart and I think that’s the motivation I had to challenge myself and bring out Jonah in a way that shows his different perspective of the world. My team also helped me bring out the character in his most natural manner in the environment he has been raised in because I personally haven’t experienced the life Jonah represents,” he said.
Speaking of what attracted him to the script of Faithless, Morris said he heavily relied on the cohort of directors for the show as he has a history with a few members of the team.
“First it was the fact that Abdi Shuria was one of the directors, and I happened to have worked with him before, and also Janet Chumbe. So I would say the cohort of directors inspired me to want the role. I was heavily dependent on the history I had with some of the team members, and also, the range of the character ‘Jonah’ intrigued me,” he said.
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