The former Arsenal and England striker turned popular pundit has a fairly substantial role in the new Netflix film. <\/p>
Kibwe Tavares and Daniel Kaluuya\u2019s debut feature film The Kitchen<\/a> boasts some exciting names in its cast<\/a> \u2013 with Top Boy<\/a> star and grime pioneer Kane Robinson leading the ensemble.<\/p>\n But one cast member who viewers might be a little more surprised to see show up is former Arsenal and England striker Ian Wright<\/a>, most commonly known these days for his popular punditry work.<\/p>\n Wright has a fairly substantial role in the film as Lord Kitchener, the resident DJ and de facto leader of an endangered social housing community known as The Kitchen, where the bulk of the action is set.<\/p> And, speaking exclusively to RadioTimes.com<\/a> about why Wright \u2013 who previously appeared as himself in an episode of Ted Lasso<\/a> \u2013 was the right fit for the role, co-director Kibwe Tavares credited casting director Aisha Bywaters with suggesting the idea.<\/p>\n \u201cThat role came in a little bit later in the process, in the script, and we wanted someone that was sort of the voice of the community,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n \u201cWe wanted someone that could really sort of, like, weather The Kitchen through the storms they were going through.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd then we started to sort of think about him more in terms of looking at his background, the community work he\u2019s done.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s quite an advocate for different communities and different people, and then that\u2019s a thing that he could build on in finding that as his first sort of acting role.\u201d<\/p>\n Read more:<\/strong><\/p>\n Tavares added that while they by no means wanted Wright to simply play a version of himself, he was encouraged to draw on his public persona when it came to bringing Lord Kitchener to life.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s not playing Ian Wright, but we weren\u2019t asking him to sort of look for things that were outside of him,\u201d he explained. \u201cIt was feeding into who he is as a person, like what his belief systems are.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd that\u2019s why, actually, on set, I think it was very comfortable and easy for him to find, and for us to work with him. It wasn\u2019t sort of like playing make-believe\u2026 he could sort of understand the emotions and where we were coming from.\u201d<\/p> \n