Spinners star Cantona James on his S1 experience

Cantona James had a solid career in series including Arendsvlei and Blood & Water, but it was the first season of Spinners that really showed off what he could do. Ahead of the premiere of the second season, coming to Mzansi Magic on 25 October at 8PM, we look back at an interview from Spinners S1. 

Get DStv  Start streaming

What happened in Spinners S1?

Spinners was the first African series selected in competition at Canneseries; won three awards at Dakar Series, including Best TV Series; received a standing ovation from its sold-out South African premiere at Silwerskerm 2023; and was the opening night screening at MIP Africa, generating rave reviews, with TWFLD hailing it as “the gold standard for local productions.” 

Spinners follows Ethan, a 17-year-old driver working for a local gang. Needing to support his younger brother but increasingly disgusted with gang life, Ethan discovers a possible way out via spinning, an extreme motorsport where he can put his driving skills to better use. With a gang war looming, can he turn his life around fast enough? 

We caught up with lead actor Cantona James (Arendsvlei, Blood & Water), who won Best Performance at Dakar for his breakthrough performance as Ethan. 

What’s the appeal of spinning?

I grew up in a community where spinning was huge but my father didn't want me to go to the spinning events. So I never really got the appeal until I went for my own spinning test drive. Then I understood, finally.

It's like all your problems fade away. You focus; it's between you and the car, and just hearing people enjoy this. 

Tell me about working with your stunt double?

So unfortunately my stunt double rarely worked because I'm a method actor. So I totally refused. Luckily, I got some incredible coaching from David Davidoss. There was one day, though that he did work. There were bees somewhere and I'm allergic to bees, so I couldn't jump over the wall. But most of my stunts I did on my own - it’s more believable - and I loved it. 

And the stunt driving? 

The precision drivers… unfortunately, I can't come close to them, so I couldn't insist on doing my own stunts. It's totally an art: you think they just spin the car recklessly, but the precision, take after take, to do the same thing was just mind-blowing. Our spinning co-ordinator, Yaseen Damon, ranked high at Red Bull Shay’ iMoto, so he's really great, and he ran a beautiful team. They were amazing every take. 

Do you relate to your character, Ethan, and his story?
Ethan is miles apart from how I grew up. I grew up not very fortunate, but well off enough. So I never had to stress about a single thing that Ethan thought about; I never thought about feeding my siblings, or a parent who is dealing with drugs, or gangsterism. 

But I do relate to his guilt and feeling responsible for the choices that people are making around you. I felt that similarity because I walked a lot of years with guilt at not protecting my family. I lost my entire family: my mother, brother and sister. And being the eldest child, I felt like I didn't do enough to protect them. And Ethan also deals with feeling like he’s not doing enough - even though it's all he can do. And I did all I could do as well. Ethan helped me to heal wounds I never even knew weren't healed before. 

What was it like filming in the Cape Flats? 

As someone coming from Johannesburg, I've heard a lot of stories about Lavender Hill. Lavender Hill was actually one of the places I was warned against and told not to go into. 

The word cathartic was used a lot on set, because we were surrounded by the story we’re telling. I'm talking about kids from 10 years old and younger, not being at school, working, selling drugs. I'm telling a fictional story, but these kids are living the life. So for me, it helped with sourcing the story and the character, and also bringing a sense of responsibility to everyone and everything that we're doing, because we can see who we're doing it for. 

We were allowed to see the human within all these people. So it was really a beautiful experience for me being in all these communities.

Why should people watch Spinners?

It's a show that makes you feel like you are eating a bowl of ice cream but on a very hot day, so it's melting very fast. It's that intense. 

For a lot of people who watch Spinners, I'm sure they will feel a sense of homecoming to their hearts, even though there's a lot of heartbreak in the story. A lot of people will relate to Spinners. Every character is so developed, that somehow, someway, someone will relate deeply to one of those characters and the story told.

Spinners S1 starts on 30 August at 8PM on Mzansi Magic channel 161, and S2 is coming on 25 October 25 at 8PM on channel 161.