LAGOS, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA) – Multi award-winning filmmaker and director Kunle Afolayan, has revealed that Netflix, is urging him to produce a series from his latest successful movie, “Anikulapo”.
He stated that he initially wanted to make the movie a series, but Netflix told him to make a movie first, and if it became a success, a series would be developed.
Afolayan made this known in an interview with The Guardian UK published on Friday.
The filmmaker said: “I’ve been working on Aníkúlápó for six years. Originally, I wanted to make a series, but I shopped it and kept telling people that this movie would be bigger than Game of Thrones.
“Eventually, Netflix told me to make a movie first since I believed in the project that much, and if it became a success, we’d develop a series.”
‘Anikulapo’, set in the 17th century ancient Oyo kingdom, follows the story of death, resurrection and the greedy desires of men.
It premiered in the cinemas and on Netflix on 30 September, 2022.
Since its release, fans have taken to Twitter to celebrate the filmmaker and appreciate the movie.
Oyo lawmaker, Akin Alabi, who asked for the continuity of the movie, tweeted: “So many angles for Kunle Afolayan to explore if he wants to turn Anikulapo into a series.
“Why did Saro leave Gbongan? Maybe he did bad things there. Did Arolake go back to Oyo? Is Saro still alive? So many angles. Series please.”
It seems the Oyo lawmaker’s wish may come true and the filmmaker revealed that the popular streaming giant is urging him to start marking the series.
“Right now, Netflix is the one urging me to start making the series. I knew we made a great film and that it’d start conversations, but I didn’t know it’d do as well as it has done,” Afolayan said.
The movie, which was acted in Yoruba language, features A-list actors and actresses such as Kunle Remi, Yinka Quadri, Bimbo Ademoye, Sola Sobowale, and a host of many others.
Speaking on the repeated snub from the Nigeria Oscars Selection Committee, Afolayan stated that he did not understand the committee’s decision not to pick his movie for the Oscars.
He said: “I don’t even care about it anymore. I don’t understand the decision, and quite a number of the guys in there are people I’d call friends. For the second year running, they’re saying no film from Nigeria deserves to be presented – it makes no sense.
“Honestly, I’m over it because if Aníkúlápó weren’t successful, they’d have said it wasn’t picked because of that reason. Now, it’s almost like, ‘How couldn’t you have presented this?’“
Recently, Afolayan had expressed optimism over the decision of the Academy of Motion Pictures, Arts and Sciences to give the NOSC another chance to make a submission for the 2023 Oscars award.
However, the committee failed to pick any Nigerian movie as they maintained that none was eligible.
