Entertainment: Heartstopper's Sebastian Croft to lead How To Date Billy Walsh rom-com

Sebastian will star opposite Bridgerton’s Charithra Chandran. 

Words: Emily Maskell; pictures: Netflix and Prime Video

Heartstopper fans rejoice! Sebastian Croft has been cast as the lead in Prime Video’s original British rom-com, How To Date Billy Walsh.

After playing the closeted school bully Ben Hope in Netflix’s beloved teen drama, the 20-year-old actor is set to be a leading man in the new rom-com as he plays teenage Archie opposite Bridgerton’s Charithra Chandran.

Croft and Chandran play childhood best friends but things grow complicated when Archie realises he is in love with her, just as he builds up the courage to share his feelings, American transfer student Billy Walsh (Tanner Buchanan) arrives and captures Amelia's (Chandran) attention.

Left to right: Tanner Buchanan, Charithra Chandran, and Sebastian Croft (Photo: Prime Video)

The film's synopsis reads: “Heartbroken Archie goes to great lengths to try and keep Amelia and Billy away from each other, but ends up pushing them closer together and risks losing his best friend at the same time.”

The movie is directed by Alex Sanjiv Pillai and written by Alexander J. Farrell and Greer Ellison, the wider cast includes Kunal Nayyar, Nick Frost, Guz Khan, Lucy Punch and newcomer Daisy Jelley.

Tushar Jindal, Head of Film Acquisition at Prime Video UK, said of the film: "How To Date Billy Walsh features an incredibly exciting, young and diverse cast that have already made a mark Internationally."

Croft has already proven his dramatic chops as Heartstopper's Ben, providing the antagonistic drama as protagonist Charlie's (Joe Locke) privately affectionate not-boyfriend.

How To Date Billy Walsh is the latest announcement from the Heartstopper crew, so as we wait for season 2 (and eventually 3!) of Heartstopper to grace us, the cast is keeping busy.

Joe Locke and co-star Will Goa, who play Charlie Spring and Tao Xu, are currently starring in dystopian courtroom drama The Trials at The Donmar Warehouse through August.

Yasmin Finney, who plays Elle Argent, will be playing a trans character called Rose in the 60th anniversary Doctor Who series alongside Ncuti Gatwa as the Doctor, Neil Patrick Harris as a villain, and returning stars David Tennant and Catherine Tate.

Meanwhile, Kit Connor has joined the film adaption of Laura Taylor Namey's A Cuban Girl’s Guide to Tea and Tomorrow alongside Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin star Maia Reficco, and La Reina del Sur's Kate del Castillo. 

How To Date Billy Walsh will launch Globally on Prime Video in 2023.

The Attitude September/October issue is out now.

source:  https://attitude.co.uk