Netflix’s new series, Breakers, has been making waves as the biggest production set in Western Australia and as the next big project for Antony Starr, known for his role as the unhinged anti-hero Homelander in The Boys. Sure, that’s great, but the really exciting news is that D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai, known for Reservation Dogs, will also be leading the series.
Woon-A-Tai will take on the role of Elliot in the eight-episode thriller that follows: “Two best friends go backpacking in Australia and are soon drawn into a seemingly perfect community of surfers led by a charismatic but mysterious figure.”
Elliott, described as a working-class, shy teen from Rhode Island chasing one last surf trip before “adult life,” while Antony Starr (The Boys, Banshee) executive produces and plays Brando. Ben Edis plays Flynn and Inez Wolfe plays Harper, with a supporting cast that includes Asher Yasbincek (Heartbreak High) as Maggie, David Howell (Run) as Iggy, Tyroe Muhafidin (The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power) as Danno, Tom Dawson (Tenzing) as Don, Sherry-Lee Watson (Heartbreak High) as Astrid, Lu Miller (Nansie) as Amara, Eliza Learmonth (Baby Shower) as Clementine and Brodie Townsend (Heartbreak High) as Kurt.
On Reservation Dogs, D’Pharaoh Woon-a-tai played Bear Smallhill with an uncanny precision that easily shifted between drama and humor. He could be funny, defensive, angry, sensitive, and completely full of it in the span of a single scene, which is to say he played a teenager like a real teenager. His performance in Reservation Dogs earned him an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series, widely covered as a historic first for an Indigenous actor in North America.
The accolades kept coming. Woon-a-tai’s been recognized at the Critics’ Choice Awards for his work on Reservation Dogs, and the show’s cast picked up major ensemble recognition too, including a win at the Independent Spirit Awards for Best Ensemble Cast in a New Scripted Series.
After Reservation Dogs ended, Woon-A-Tai starred as Ray Mendoza in A24’s Warfare, a real-time war film co-directed by Mendoza and Alex Garland. He also took on roles in Finn Wolfhard’s Hell of a Summer, Darren Aronofsky’s Caught Stealing, and Andrew Haigh’s upcoming film, A Long Winter.
Breakers feels like a promising next step that will catapult Woon-a-Tai’s career to the next level. And honestly, it is just exciting to watch his career keep opening up like this, role by role, project by project, without being typecast and allowed to showcase his range as the incredible actor that he is.
If Breakers plays to his strengths, it will give him space to be messy, sharp, funny, furious, and human, all inside a story that tightens like a rip current. It is the next test of how far Woon-A-Tai can stretch his talents, and proof of the growing trust the industry is finally extending to Indigenous talent and letting them lead.
The series is written by Pete Jackson (The Death of Bunny Munro, Somewhere Boy) and directed by Mary Nighy (Say Nothing, Industry) alongside Ng Choon Ping (What It Feels Like for a Girl, Femme). Executive producers include Gavin O’Grady (Somewhere Boy, This Way Up), Petra Fried (Baby Reindeer, The End of the Fing World), Wim De Greef (Baby Reindeer, The End of the Fing World), and Jackson.
Production is currently underway, with filming set to wrap in June 2026. The series will be released globally on Netflix.
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