Top Boy officially wrapped with its fifth season late last year, and while the show's creators have been clear that the most recent series was definitely its last (sob), it hasn't stopped fans from holding out hope that it'll return to our screens in the not so distant future.
The show originally aired on Channel 4 in 2011, and despite two successful seasons it wasn't renewed by the broadcaster. But in 2019 it was revived by Netflix with Drake on board as executive producer, and upon its release the third instalment became the streaming platform's most-watched show in the UK.
It follows the lives of Dushane (Ashley Walters) and Sully (Kano), two notorious drug dealers from the Summerhouse estate in east London, as they fight their way to the top of the game. But after their deaths in the season five finale, it seemed all but certain that there really would be a Top Boy-shaped hole in our lives forever.
However, one of the show's creators, Ronan Bennett, has confirmed that there are talks to develop a spin-off show which will follow one of the remaining living characters and fan favourite, Jaq. Although he said that Netflix would 'probably be angry' at him for sharing the intel, he told Deadline: "We are talking to Netflix about a spin-off, which will be around Jaq."
He added: "I've learned through bitter experience not to talk too much about shows that are in the future. You just never know if they're going to get made and in fact, most shows that are developed actually don't get made. You can write the script and, for whatever reason, they don't get made. So you end up looking like a bit of a fool for mentioning it. But I have hopes that this will work."
Jasmine Jobson, who played Jaq, previously told Royal Television Society that it was the 'right thing' to bow out after five seasons, explaining: "It’s especially apt because of the subject matter. We’re showing the public that there’s only so far you can go. You can end up in prison, you can end up dead, but every top boy has to come to a stop at some point. You don’t see 60 or 70-year-old top boys, unless it’s the mafia. So I feel like we’re doing the right thing."
But could she be tempted back to Summerhouse with her own spin-off?
We'll have to wait and see...
