TORONTO — As she prepares for the airing of the final season of “Diggstown,” star Vinessa Antoine struggles to come to terms with the show she considers an “anomaly” on Canadian television coming to an end. .
TORONTO — As she prepares for the airing of the final season of “Diggstown,” star Vinessa Antoine struggles to come to terms with the show she considers an “anomaly” on Canadian television coming to an end. .
“I was hoping it might not be the last season, but I was treating it like it was the last, because I was super emotional,” Antoine, who plays lawyer Marcie Diggs, said in an interview ahead of Season 4. premieres on CBC Wednesday.
“Even hearing someone outside of our ‘Diggstown’ family circle say it ends with such 100% certainty, even now, sounds like something I just don’t really want to hear.”
Billed by CBC as “the first black Canadian actor in an hour-long drama on television in Canada,” Antoine says it’s hard to part with a character who defied stereotypes on screen.
“I’ve been… auditioning for over half my life, I’ve read a ton of scripts, and when I read this I was like, ‘oh, thank God,'” the l former regular at “General Hospital.” “That’s what I’ve been saying for years. Why couldn’t we play black characters who were thinking outside the box?”
In some ways, Diggs followed legal procedural tropes as a strong female protagonist who traded her big-city legal career to put her community first.
But her 2019 arrival on the small screen — a surfboard under one arm, clad in a wetsuit as she strides toward an ocean — made it clear that Diggs wouldn’t be locked into genre conventions.
For series creator Floyd Kane, Diggs was an ideal — the black Canadian lawyer some would least expect to see riding a surfboard before her day job.
“At some point, it became really important to me to see this image of a black woman surfing the Atlantic, and it was that image that really kicked off the whole show,” says Kane, a native of Nova Scotia who spent a lot of time on the beach in Martinique.
“It was one of those places where I never saw a lot of black people frolicking in the water growing up.”
It seemed fitting that the TV series was largely set in North Preston, one of Nova Scotia’s oldest black communities, says Kane, who drew inspiration from his own East Preston roots to give the emitting a lived sensation.
“I wanted to focus on how these communities tend to be stigmatized by the media,” says Kane. “It was very important to me in the sense that if you don’t see yourself represented in the media, then you don’t exist.”
The final season draws inspiration from the real-life issues that run through the justice system — including systemic racism, anti-transgender discrimination and the challenges of COVID-19 regulations — as a struggling Diggs faces the hurdles physical and mental from the events of last season involving a church shooting, while facing defections and threats from all sides.
For Antoine, playing a character who is often at the center of such visible issues can come with an added sense of urgency by the very nature of his own screen visibility.
“I felt a huge pressure to be good,” said Antoine. “I wanted black women and black people in Canada to see it and say, ‘Yeah, I’m proud of it,’ but I also wanted the Guardians to see it and consider the idea of doing another show like this. .”
Both Kane and Antoine acknowledge that the television landscape has changed since “Diggstown” launched in 2019.
Canadian creators are increasingly coming up with stories with a variety of characters and perspectives. But when it comes to what’s greenlit, Antoine and Kane say “Diggstown” stands out in a prime-time lineup dominated by shows with white leads.
“I feel like the show is still an anomaly in itself,” says Antoine. “I can say that I don’t think I will be able to play another role like this, especially in Canada for the rest of my life. It was a special moment and a very special opportunity and I don’t think we will see a show like this for a very long time.
Although he felt it was time to end “Diggstown” in order to pursue other projects, Kane says he and the cast leave behind a legacy they will cherish.
“I wanted to create a show of contemporary black people and people of color living their lives. It’s always been my thing,” Kane says. “I just don’t want this to be the last time because it would be really unfortunate and shameful if I’m being honest.”
The final season of “Diggstown” airs on CBC and its streaming service Gem at 8 p.m. Wednesday.
This report from The Canadian Press was first published on October 12, 2022.
Noel Ransome, The Canadian Press
“Pop culture fanatic. Introvert. Devoted food trailblazer. Bacon geek. Lifelong coffee evangelist.”