United Kingdom, June 20 -- Stormzy found it difficult to "totally separate" himself from his Big Man character.

The 31-year-old star plays a rapper in his first lead role, and Stormzy admits that he struggled to distance himself from his movie character.

The award-wining star - who plays Tenzman in the new film - told BBC Newsbeat: "It was really tough if I'm honest.

"It felt like I'm playing a rapper but I am a rapper, it's tough to totally separate."

Big Man is the first release from Stormzy's #MerkyFilm production company, and the rapper has revealed his long-term ambition for the enterprise.

He shared: "What we've tried to do at Merky, whether it's music, sports, whatever, we do we just want to stand in our truth, tell our storie...