Top Boy star Micheal Ward has spoken out to maintain his innocence as he faces trial on charges of rape and sexual assault. The 27-year-old actor and model, who has starred in a string of hit movies alongside stars including Olivia Colman, Colin Firth and Joaquin Phoenix, is accused of two counts of rape and three counts of sexual assault. The alleged offences relate to one woman and are claimed to have taken place in January 2023. But Ward said in a statement: 'I deny the charges against me entirely. I have co-operated fully with the police throughout their investigation and will continue to co-operate. 'I recognise that proceedings are now ongoing, and I have full faith that they will lead to my name being cleared. Given those proceedings, I am unable to comment further.' The Jamaican-born British star is best known for his role of Jamie in Top Boy and appeared in 19 episodes of the gritty Netflix drama between 2013 and 2022. Detective Superintendent Scott Ware, whose team is leading the Met Police's investigation, said: 'Our specialist officers continue to support the woman who has come forward - we know investigations of this nature can have significant impact on those who make reports.' The Crown Prosecution Services authorised the five charges this afternoon. Catherine Baccas, Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor for CPS London South, said: 'Having carefully reviewed a file of evidence, the Crown Prosecution Service has authorised the Metropolitan Police to charge Micheal Ward, 27, with two counts of rape, two counts of assault by penetration, and one count of sexual assault against a woman in January 2023. 'He will appear at Thames Magistrates' Court on Thursday, August 28. 'We remind all concerned that proceedings against the suspect are active and he has a right to a fair trial. 'It is vital that there should be no reporting, commentary or sharing of information online which could in anyway prejudice these proceedings.' The Jamaican-born star has enjoyed a great rise to fame since scooping the EE Rising Star BAFTA award in 2020 for his part as Jamie in Top Boy, the much-praised Netflix series. He beat Jack Lowden, Awkwafina, Kaitlyn Dever and Kelvin Harrison Jr. to win the prestigious honour. That year he was also named in Forbes' 30 under 30 list of the UK's biggest young stars. As well as starring as Jamie in Top Boy, he also featured in TV series The A List, portraying the character of Brendan. The actor has also bagged roles in Small Axe, The Book Of Clarence and Sam Mendes' Empire Of Light, in which his character Stephen enjoys an age-gap relationship with Olivia Colman's character Hilary. He was nominated for the Bafta Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for his performance in BBC's Small Axe in 2021 and the 2022 film Empire Of Light. Last year, Micheal took on a lead role alongside film legend Bill Nighy in sports drama The Beautiful Game. This year he was at Cannes and the Paris film festivals to promote 'Eddington', starring him Joaquin Phoenix and Emma Stone. He also appeared in the Sam Mendes drama Empire of Light for which he was nominated for the Bafta Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role.