Susan Wokoma has joined the cast of Wahala, the ’s new six-part thriller based on Nikki May’s debut novel, as filming gets under way on the adaptation from BAFTA-nominated writer Theresa Ikoko.

Wokoma will play Ronke, one of three best friends at the centre of the series, which follows four Nigerian-British women in their thirties. The drama is being made by Firebird Pictures, part of Studios, for iPlayer and One, with Adelayo Adedayo, Cush Jumbo, Deborah Ayorinde and Genevieve Nnaji also starring.

The casting announcement gives the series its first public shape ahead of production: a female-led ensemble, a well-known source novel and a creative team built around Ikoko’s scripts. The described Wahala as a gripping and surprising thriller, and the lineup reflects that pitch, pairing Wokoma with actors known for sharply drawn screen work.

Wokoma said she had long admired Ikoko’s writing and was honoured to be part of the team bringing Nikki May’s world to screen alongside three of the country’s most outstanding actresses. Ikoko said she could not wait to bring Wahala to life with the cast, directors and crew.

There is a catch in the story’s clean family of announcements: the series is being sold as a friendship drama, but its tension comes from disruption. The four women’s lives are thrown by a new acquaintance, turning what begins as an ensemble about bonds and ambition into something more unstable. That shift is what the broadcaster is betting viewers will follow.

For Wokoma, the role of Ronke places her in the heart of that pressure point. For the, the question now is whether this adaptation can turn a familiar novel into the kind of thriller that lands with both returning viewers and new ones when the six-part series reaches the screen.