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Top Boy star Jasmine Jobson on how her new true story boxing film helped her cope with grief
The BAFTA-winner plays groundbreaking Olympic boxer Ramla Ali in new film In the Shadows, which arrives this week in UK cinemas.
Civic Studios and Affine Films
- Patrick Cremona
Published: Thursday, 29 October 2026 at 5:02 pm
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It was revealed this summer that Jasmine Jobson would be reprising her BAFTA-winning role as Jaq in a new Top Boy spin-off series – but before that, the star is taking on her very first leading movie role.
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In the Shadows – which premiered at the recent BFI London Film Festival – arrives in UK cinemas this weekend and sees Jobson portraying groundbreaking boxer Ramla Ali.
Ali, who moved to the UK as a refugee when she was a toddler, became the first boxer to compete at the Olympics for Somalia at the Tokyo Games in 2021, with the film retelling the story of how she made that happen.
And speaking exclusively to Radio Times ahead of the release, Jobson revealed that taking on the role had been something of a healing experience for her.
"We all understood that we were there for the same purpose – and that purpose is to honour Ramla and her family's story," she said, adding that she was "all round just grateful for this project and this experience."
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"It allowed me to find my own strength within myself again," she continued, going on to explain that she had been through a lot in her personal life whilst filming was ongoing on the project.
"I had quite a few family deaths," she revealed. "I had about nine funerals to attend in the space of a year. Crazy, crazy work. I was absolutely distraught for about a year or two whilst we was filming.
"This project gave me the opportunity to leave my issues at the door and almost pick up [Ali's] life," she said.
"And where [Ali's] life became my own, it was like I was no longer Jasmine. I was Ramla. So I didn't need to deal with what I was dealing with. In a way, it gave me a way to cope and allowed me to put everything that I was feeling into my fight scenes."
Given it's a film about a champion boxer, those fight scenes were naturally a key part of the movie, and they required Jobson to undergo the most physically enduring training process of her career as she prepared to play the role.
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"I'd be lying if I was to say that I wasn't a little bit concerned and I didn't have a little bit of worry," she explained of that process. "Of course, I naturally had that worry of, 'Am I actually going to be able to do this?'
"But one thing I'm very good at is when I stick my mind to something, I'm very good at pushing through and achieving it," she added. "I don't like being told no. I'm a master at what I do. Once I put my head down, I'm very much tunnel vision. So yeah, I became a champion in two weeks!"
Ali herself was clearly impressed by Jobson's efforts, which is perhaps no surprise given she was certain the Top Boy star was the right person to play her almost as soon as they'd met.
Jasmine Jobson and Ramla Ali. Photo by Laura Rose/Dave Benett/WireImage
"What I really loved was how vulnerable she was with me," Ali explained of their first sit down meeting. "She told me about her whole life story, how hard it was for her growing up, the the struggles that she went through, her trauma. I felt really connected with that.
"Sometimes actors and actresses... for them it's just a job. But for me it didn't seem like this was just a job for her. She wanted to tell this story and she wanted to do it justice, and I love that."
It wasn't only Jobson who Ali was pleased with, either. Director Anthony Wonke ensured that she met with every head of department ahead of filming in order to ensure that her story was being portrayed as accurately as possible, with the boxer claiming she was "involved in every aspect from inception to the final delivery."
"I love how my story has been told," Ali said. "It's been told with respect. It's been told with poise, grace, all of that. And so here I am promoting it, even though I'm in the middle of a very gruelling training camp! I'm here promoting it because I'm very happy with how the film has turned out."
In the Shadows is released in UK cinemas on Friday 30 October 2026.
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Authors
Patrick CremonaSenior Film Writer
Patrick Cremona is the Senior Film Writer at Radio Times, and looks after all the latest film releases both in cinemas and on streaming. He has been with the website since October 2019, and in that time has interviewed a host of big name stars and reviewed a diverse range of movies.
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