‘Top Boy’ Star Micheal Ward Cleared of Rape and Sexual Assault Charges
A jury deliberated more than five hours before unanimously clearing the BAFTA-winning actor of charges stemming from a 2023 encounter he described as consensual.
A London jury found actor Micheal Ward not guilty on all counts of rape and sexual assault Friday, ending a two-week trial that centered on a January 2023 encounter following a nightclub meeting in east London.
Jurors at Snaresbrook Crown Court deliberated for roughly five and a half hours before returning unanimous verdicts clearing the 28-year-old “Top Boy” and “Eddington” actor of two counts of rape, two counts of assault by penetration and one count of sexual assault. Ward reportedly broke down in tears when the verdicts were read.
The case stemmed from an encounter after Ward and the woman met near an all-white New Year’s party in Gants Hill in January 2023. Prosecutors alleged Ward assaulted her in the back of a car. Ward testified in his own defense, telling jurors the two had flirted throughout the evening, exchanged contact information, then kissed and engaged in what he described as consensual sexual activity. “Everything we did was wholly consensual,” he told the court, adding that he believed the woman “wanted to be there.”
The woman gave a different account, telling jurors she felt “numb” and “scared” during the encounter and did not believe she had a genuine choice in what happened. She said she told Ward on multiple occasions that she needed to leave and later indicated she had been assaulted when she ordered an STI test. One juror later said the complainant’s uncertain memory of parts of the incident influenced the panel’s decision.
Ward was arrested later in January 2023 and formally charged in July 2025. He maintained his innocence throughout, saying in an earlier statement that he had full faith the legal process would clear his name. The accusation cost him his UK representation at Olivia Bell Management, though he continued to be represented in the United States by CAA.
The actor built his career on the strength of his role as Jamie Tovell in “Top Boy,” Netflix’s crime drama, and earned a BAFTA Rising Star Award in 2020. He also starred in Steve McQueen’s “Lovers Rock” and appeared alongside Joaquin Phoenix, Pedro Pascal and Emma Stone in Ari Aster’s “Eddington” this year. Following the verdict, Ward’s legal team said the actor intends to return to acting while stressing that allegations of sexual assault deserve to be treated with care and taken seriously.
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