I May Destroy You is a British black comedy-drama television series created, written, co-directed, and executive produced by Michaela Coel for BBC One and HBO. The series is set in London with a predominantly Black British cast. Coel stars as Arabella, a young writer in the public eye who seeks to rebuild her life after being raped, with co-stars Weruche Opia as Terry and Paapa Essiedu as Kwame, her two best friends. The series premiered on 7 June 2020 on HBO and on 8 June 2020 on BBC One.
I May Destroy You received rave reviews; it was hailed as a masterpiece upon release and was quickly named one of the greatest television series of all time. Its writing, direction, editing, soundtrack, and the performances of the lead trio were all acclaimed by critics. The series won the BAFTA TV Awards for Best Mini-Series, Best Actress, Best Director: Drama, Best Writer: Drama and Best Editing: Fiction. At the 73rd Primetime Emmy Awards, the series received nine nominations including Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series; it won two awards including Outstanding Writing for Coel, making her the first black woman to win the award in the category.
Premise Arabella is a young Twitter-star-turned-novelist in her late twenties living in London. She has found fame with her debut book Chronicles of a Fed-Up Millennial, and is publicly celebrated as a Millennial icon. While struggling to meet a deadline for her second book, she takes a break from work to meet up with friends on a night out. The following morning, she struggles to remember what happened to her, but recalls the events of the night with the help of her friends Terry and Kwame.
Cast and characters The cast consists of mostly Black British actors. They include:
Main Michaela Coel as Arabella Essiedu, a writer Weruche Opia as Terry Pratchard, Arabella's best friend and a struggling actor Paapa Essiedu as Kwame, Arabella's best friend
Recurring
Marouane Zotti as Biagio, a drug dealer based in Ostia, Italy, who has a casual relationship with Arabella Stephen Wight as Ben, Arabella's flatmate Adam James as Julian, Arabella's literary agent Natalie Walter as Francine, Arabella's financier Aml Ameen as Simon, Arabella's friend who works in the City of London Lara Rossi as Kat, Simon's partner Ann Akin as Alissa, Simon's secret lover Chin Nyenwe as Tariq, David's friend Lewis Reeves as David, from Ego Death Sarah Niles as Officer Funmi Mariah Gale as Officer Beth Rebecca Calder as Shirley, a rape victim who meets Arabella at the hospital Andi Osho as Carrie, Arabella's therapist Fehinti Balogun as Damon, Kwame's love interest Karan Gill as Zain Sareen, writer from Henny publishing Samson Ajewole as Malik, Kwame's hookup Tobi King Bakare as Nicholas, Arabella's brother Ellie James as Sion, Susy's assistant Franc Ashman as Susy Henny, Arabella's publisher Harriet Webb as Theodora, Arabella and Terry's childhood classmate Shalisha James-Davis as Loretta, a member of Theodora's support group Gaby French as teen Theodora Danielle Vitalis as teen Arabella Lauren-Joy Williams as teen Terry Pearl Chanda as Nilufer, Kwame's first female hookup Gershwyn Eustache Jnr as Tyrone, one of Kwame's hookups Tyler Luke Cunningham as Kai, Terry's love interest
Notable guests
Katherine Jakeways as Jacki Juno Dawson as Scarlett
Kadiff Kirwan as Officer Tom
Antonia Clarke as Emily
Vivian Oparah as Bisola
Jonathan Slinger as doctor
Episodes
Release The series premiered on 7 June 2020 on HBO and HBO Max in the United States, and on 8 June 2020 on BBC One in the UK.
Production Coel stated in a lecture at the 2018 Edinburgh Festival Fringe that she had been sexually assaulted while writing Chewing Gum, and that the experience provided inspiration for the series.
Originally titled 22 January, the series is produced by Coel's production company, FALKNA Productions. It is executive produced by Coel, Phil Clarke, Roberto Troni, and Jo McClellan for BBC One. Coel is also co-director and writer for I May Destroy You. Coel turned down a $1 million (£800,000) offer from Netflix for the show because the deal would have taken full rights ownership away from the creator. Coel subsequently made a deal with the BBC which allowed Coel full creative control and ownership rights of her project and the BBC brought on HBO as a co-producer to help fund the project.
The series was predominantly filmed in the London Borough of Hackney, with some scenes filmed in Italy. School interior and exteriors for the flashback scenes were shot at Acland Burghley School in the Camden.
Reception Critical response I May Destroy You holds an average score of 86 out of 100 based on reviews from 25 critics on review aggregator Metacritic, indicating "universal acclaim". On Rotten Tomatoes, 97% of 72 reviews are positive, with an average score of 8.55/10. The website's critical consensus is, "I May Destroy You is at once brave and delicate, untangling the trauma of sexual assault with dark humour and moments of deep discomfort all held together on the strength of Michaela Coel's undeniable talent." I May Destroy You has been considered by multiple publications to be one of the greatest television series of all time.
Writing for The New York Times, critic Mike Hale called the series "touching and quietly hilarious." He praised Coel and the show's willingness to push boundaries. Carina Chocano, also writing in The New York Times, described the series as "the perfect show for an anxious world." In her review for Time, critic Judy Berman noted the show's unique and complex telling of a story centred on sexual assault after the Me Too movement.
Awards and nominations Year Award Category Nominee(s) Result 2020 RTS Craft & Design Awards Costume Design - Drama Lynsey Moore Director - Drama Sam Miller, Michaela Coel Make Up Design - Drama Bethany Swan RTS Special Award I May Destroy You 2021 British Academy Television Awards Best Mini-Series I May Destroy You Best Actor Paapa Essiedu Best Actress Michaela Coel Best Supporting Actress Weruche Opia British Academy Television Craft Awards Best Director: Fiction Michaela Coel and Sam Miller Best Editing: Fiction Editing Team Best Make Up & Hair Design Bethany Swan Best Writer: Drama Michaela Coel Costume Designers Guild Awards Excellence in Contemporary Television Lynsey Moore (for "Social Media is a Great Way to Connect") Critics' Choice Television Awards Best Limited Series I May Destroy You Best Actress in a Limited Series or Television Movie Michaela Coel GLAAD Media Awards Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series I May Destroy You Gotham Independent Film Awards Breakthrough Series – Short Form Michaela Coel, Phil Clarke and Roberto Troni Hollywood Critics Association TV Awards Best Broadcast Network or Cable Limited Series, Anthology Series or Live-Action Television Movie I May Destroy You Best Actress in a Limited Series, Anthology Series or Television Movie Michaela Coel Independent Spirit Awards Best New Scripted Series Michaela Coel, Phil Clarke and Roberto Troni Best Ensemble Cast in a New Scripted Series Michaela Coel, Paapa Essiedu, Weruche Opia and Stephen Wight Motion Picture Sound Editors Awards Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing – Live Action Under 35 Minutes Jim Goddard, Joe Beal, Tom Deane, Alex Sidiropoulos and Anna Wright (for "Eyes Eyes Eyes Eyes") MTV Movie & TV Awards Best Performance in a Show Michaela Coel NAACP Image Awards Outstanding Actress in a Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special Michaela Coel Outstanding Directing in a Comedy Series Sam Miller and Michaela Coel (for "Ego Death") Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series Michaela Coel (for "Ego Death") Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series Michaela Coel, Phil Clarke, Roberto Troni, Simon Meyers and Simon Maloney Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie Michaela Coel Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie Paapa Essiedu (for "That Was Fun") Outstanding Directing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie Sam Miller and Michaela Coel (for "Ego Death") Sam Miller (for "Eyes Eyes Eyes Eyes") Outstanding Writing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie Michaela Coel Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards Outstanding Casting for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie Julie Harkin Outstanding Contemporary Costumes Lynsey Moore, Rosie Lack and Debbie Roberts (for "Social Media is a Great Way to Connect") Outstanding Music Supervision Ciara Elwis and Matt Biffa (for "Ego Death") Producers Guild of America Awards David L. Wolper Award for Outstanding Producer of Limited Series Television Michaela Coel, Phil Clarke, Roberto Troni, Simon Meyers and Simon Maloney RTS Programme Awards Mini-Series I May Destroy You Actor – Female Michaela Coel Writer – Drama Screen Actors Guild Awards Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series Television Critics Association Awards Program of the Year I May Destroy You Outstanding Achievement in Movies, Miniseries and Specials Outstanding New Program Individual Achievement in Drama Michaela Coel
See also List of Primetime Emmy Awards received by HBO
Notes
References
External links
I May Destroy You on HBO