‘Top End Wedding’ Star Miranda Tapsell Talks Amazon Sequel Series: “We’ve Only Just Scratched the Surface”
Amazon Prime Video ANZ has released first-look images of Top End Bub, the sequel series to Top End Wedding, Wayne Blair’s 2019 road movie that proved to be a big hit in Australia for Universal Pictures.
The eight-part series is created, executive produced and written by Miranda Tapsell and Joshua Tyler and produced by Goalpost Pictures, and follows on from the events of Top End Wedding. Tapsell also plays Indigenous lawyer Lauren, one of the stars of the franchise.
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When we last saw Lauren in Top End Wedding, she had married her British boyfriend Ned (Gwilym Lee) in her hometown of Darwin, despite some hiccups and familial drama along the way. Top End Bub sees Lauren and Ned head back up north when they discover that Lauren’s eight-year-old niece Bub has been orphaned. The couple decide to leave behind their life of comfort down south to look out for Bub, and for Lauren, in particular, a chance to reconnect with her Indigenous roots and community.
Reprising their roles from the film are Lauren’s parents Daffy (Ursula Yovich) and Trevor (Huw Higginson) with The Office‘s Shari Sebbens returning as Ronelle alongside Elaine Crombie as Dana and Tracy Mann as Ned’s mother Annie. Newcomers to the franchise include Rob Collins, Brooke Satchwell, Guy Simon and Clarence Ryan.
Top End Bub is set to hit Prime Video some time next year.
The Hollywood Reporter spoke to Tapsell about Top End Bub, the chance to learn more about Lauren’s mysterious mum Daffy, the thrill of depicting her hometown on the screen, the troubled historical representation of First Nations people on Australian television and the progress being made.
Let’s start with the new series, Top End Bub, what did it feel like returning to an IP that was really popular?
Oh, it was great. We got to bring back some of the magic, and we got to reunite everyone. It’s been a sheer delight.
After Top End Wedding, was there a plan for sequels or a series? Did you think the film had potential to do that?
We always thought there was potential to do that. Especially after the film got so much buzz. Josh Tyler and I thought there’s more to Lauren and Ned’s marriage than their wedding. We’ve only just scratched the surface with it, and we should see what they do next.
But did you think it could work as a series?
We were willing to try it. I think the great thing about doing a half-hour, eight-part [series] is that there is so much more you can explore. You can only do so much in 90 minutes. But now we got four hours, and that’s just something you can enjoy over a weekend.
Were there characters you created that you wanted to put in the film, but you couldn’t due to the run time? Or characters you couldn’t really flesh out?
Well, I think that what I’m happiest about the series is that we actually get to see more of Lauren’s mum Daffy. She was such a mystery throughout the film, but [Ursula Yovich] is such a wonderful performer, and she did a “Dame Judy Dench” in the film where she was only in it for six minutes, and it was amazing. I’m just really glad that there was an opportunity for her to shine in this series.
You’re wearing two hats with the Top End projects, as both the star and a writer. As a writer, did the film and series draw inspiration from your own life?
I think [writing for me] was just a natural progression, but I’m really grateful to Josh for encouraging me to take this leap and go into writing. I underestimated how much I wanted, how much I needed to do that. I’ve got so much to say, and now I’ve got the permission and the freedom to do it. [About my own life] there’s so much. The fact that I’m writing about the community that I grew up with, so many cousins coming in and out of my house. That I was raised by my grandparents, my aunties and uncles. And the fact that I get to celebrate my community is a really wonderful thing.
You worked with Wayne Blair on Top End Wedding, and also previously on the film The Sapphires, he’s not involved in the series?
Christiaan Van Vuuren and Shari Sebbens directed the series. They’re both involved with The Office, Christiaan directed The Office for Prime Video, the new Australian one, and Shari is starring in it. Shari’s moved on into directing and they are such a dynamic duo. They’re incredible to work with. I feel like they’ve really taken everything that’s special about the film and brought it into the show, all of the heart, all of the humor, that everyone wants and deserves, they get. But not only that, people who haven’t seen the film don’t necessarily need to feel the pressure of going off to watch the film. This series really does stand on its own two feet.
You’re from Darwin, was it special to see your own city on screen? Do you feel like Darwin’s overlooked a little bit?
Oh, I was ashamed of coming from the [Northern Territory] when I moved down to Sydney! I was ashamed in the same way that anyone’s ashamed of their hometown. It’s always been known as being a bit rough, a bit rugged and isolated. I think people are worried that it’s just hot and there’s nothing to do. And I just really wanted to subvert that in this show. But you do have to live a different life when you move there to the one that you live in a big city like Melbourne or Sydney. That makes it the perfect leaping-off point for Lauren and Ned who are fish out of water. They want all of the luxuries of a big city, but they have to learn that it’s the small pleasures that you have to appreciate.
Top End Wedding and a few other shows recently have had a much more positive representation of First Nations people. Why has that happened?
I think it’s because people like me are taking those stories and making sure that we’re at the center of it. It’s because of all the writing opportunities [I’ve had] and now becoming a producer, I actually get to have a say in how those stories are told.
For non-Australians, could you explain how First Nations people were presented in Australian film and TV generally?
So for a long time, and I think a lot of Native American and Maori people can relate to this, a lot of shows tended to depict that our communities being a bit dysfunctional, that alcohol is at the center of it all, and that we are often quite negligent of each other that we don’t know how to care for each other. But over time [it’s changed]. I’ve been very lucky to enter the industry when filmmakers were wanting to challenge that stereotype and change it. And I’m really lucky that that I got to work on a film called The Sapphires where I actually got to show empowered aboriginal women that we weren’t victims of our circumstances, that we had agency and autonomy. And it’s exactly the same thing with Top End Bub — it is about a really strong interracial family that will put aside their differences to take care of each other.
Do you feel like there’s a real move away from negative depictions, or do those lazy stereotypes still exist?
Well, I think those stereotypes will always exist. But I think for me, I’m in a very privileged position where I actually get to use my art to speak about my perspective and the truth of the Aboriginal community that I grew up with in the Northern Territory, the Larrakia and the Tiwi. I adore my community, and I’m very proud of being a part of it. So to actually show the best parts of the community through this series was so fulfilling and meaningful to me.
Did you get feedback from the community? What do they think about the film?
The Tiwi people absolutely loved the film. When we went back to the islands to film the series, everyone was so, so excited.
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