Sheridan Smith to play porn star in Channel 4 drama series
Adult Material will investigate the modern day concerns with the connections between "sex, power and consent"
Sheridan Smith is to play an ageing porn star in a new four-part ITV drama aiming to investigate the very modern concerns of "the myriad of ways that sex, power and consent are intrinsically connected".
Written by playwright Lucy Kirkwood, Adult Material casts Smith as Jolene Dollar, a mother of three who has also been a leading British porn star for the past two decades.
Jolene has seen her working world go from seedy backroom enterprise to multi-million pound industry – one of the few where women actually get paid more than men – and she enjoys what she does.
But Jolene's relationship with an unstable young woman new to the industry, and hardly older than one of her daughters, proves a catalyst that sees her own career and complicated home life start to unravel.
“Adult Material tackles some really important topics, topics that I’m sure will resonate with people up and down the UK," said Smith. "I think it's taboo-busting drama which not only confronts these questions head on but is also a brilliantly brave and unabashed story told with real heart...
"Adult Material gives Jolene the platform and voice she deserves and it feels like the perfect time to tell her story. I’ve played some truly fascinating women in my career, from all walks of life, and I can’t wait to step into Jolene’s shoes.”
