Chosen Roles Only: Malachi Kirby on Discipline, Risk & Longevity

This week, Mo Gilligan is joined by BAFTA Award-winning actor Malachi Kirby for a powerful conversation about craft, courage, and carving your own lane.

Growing up in Battersea, Malachi found acting through local drama classes before becoming part of a generation-defining wave of British talent. From portraying Kunta Kinte in Roots, to his BAFTA-winning performance in Steve McQueen’s Small Axe, to Black Mirror and now series two of A Thousand Blows on Disney+, Malachi reflects on the roles that shaped him — and the ones he turned down.

They talk about introversion, identity, trusting instinct over hype, navigating pressure after awards, and why movement — creatively and personally — has been central to Malachi’s life. Honest, reflective, and deeply grounded, this episode is about longevity over noise, truth over performance, and building something that lasts.