David Oyelowo explains why his 'unique' new Apple TV+ series was a 'career first'

David Oyelowo has said he’s never done anything quite like his new Apple TV+ drama Government Cheese in his career before.

The British star best known for portraying the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in Selma, as well as teaming with the streaming service for their science fiction drama Silo, launches his latest Apple project this Wednesday (16th April).

In this inventive and wholly original historical dramedy, Oyelowo stars as Hampton Chambers, a former burglar who finds God during his time in prison in the 1960s.

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After three years inside, he’s released and tries to get his life back on track by inventing a self-sharpening drill called the Bit Magician, but he soon starts to struggle on his newfound spiritual journey.

Speaking to Express Online, Oyelowo was keen to share how refreshing he found co-creator Paul Hunter's vision when he signed on as lead actor and executive producer.

“It’s one thing to think that it’s unique and surreal but to talk to many people who have now seen it and for them to feel that way as well… That’s what I felt when Paul first presented me with this short film script that we then made into a short that we spun into a show,” he said.

“It’s really hard… in fact, this may be the first time in my career where I’ve been part of something that feels truly unique. Where I truly cannot think of a [comparison], it doesn’t feel derivative, it feels like we’re coming up with something new that may go on to be replicated or may become a comp or a reference point for other shows that come behind it.

“That in and of itself is a reason to run towards something, let alone its human components, its familiar components. The idea of a kind of, for my character, spiritual quest, as it were."

The series is also a rarity in Hollywood as a period drama set in the 1960s with a predominantly Black cast that doesn’t put racism front and centre in the narrative.

“And also a Black, quirky family in this context, in a time where we often see Black people depicted but it’s always tied to Civil Rights or racial struggle,” Oyelowo continued. “In this, those things are not prevalent.

“There are so many things that just made it feel like we were doing something off the beaten path which is always going to be something you want in this art form.”

When he returns from prison, Hampton not only attempts to woo back his wife, Astoria (Simone Missick) but also win over his now grown-up sons, amateur pole vaulter Einstein (Evan Alexander Ellison) and distrustful rebel Harrison (Jahi Di'Allo Winston).

Winston echoed Oyelowo’s thoughts on the series, telling the Express: “It had this quality of a lot of filmmakers that I love, like Wes Anderson or Tim Burton, just this really unique, sort of left of centre in the best way quality. But it was centred on a Black family.

“I had never seen anything like that, specifically my character who’s very deadpan but also very intelligent and is very defiant in his beliefs.

“It was different from any character that I’ve ever played. I’ve played a lot of troubled Black teens in my career and this one was done in a way where it was rooted in something different than just a stereotype.”

And Ellison agreed: “For me it was refreshing to see how the story unfolded and it was showcased in a way that doesn’t solely talk about race or solely talk about Civil Rights. It’s present and you’ll see it baked in in little ways but it’s not the tone of the show which I thought was really cool.

“My character specifically, in the 60s a young Black man who’s turning down Harvard, turning down MIT to do pole vaulting, there’s something really intriguing about that and I just wanted to see what it was about. It was really exciting to see what Einstein is about.”

Apple TV+ viewers are in for a treat as the first four episodes will arrive on the platform this Wednesday, followed by brand new episodes every week until 28th May.

Government Cheese premieres Wednesday, 16th April on Apple TV+.