Cast Members Relieve Experience, Roles on Set of ‘Rise of the Spectre’

Ferdinand Ekechukwu

Select cast members including Lateef Adedimeji, Gabriel Afolayan and Uzee Usman, Eyiyemi Afolayan and Oyindamola Sanni, have spoken on their roles and experience on the set of Anikulapo: Rise of the Spectre. A sequel to the epic movie, Anikulapo, the six-part series follows Saro’s return to the Oyo Kingdom with orders to complete a nearly impossible task.

The original movie tells the story of Saro, who arrived in Oyo as a stranger and a traditional textile weaver. Saro and Arolake are caught in a forbidden romance, as she is an unhappy wife to the King. The two eloped and Saro becomes a man of influence after being saved from death by a mysterious bird. Soon, the lovers are torn apart by Saro’s betrayal.

It ends with Arolake disappearing after destroying what made Saro powerful. Speaking on the project, Adedimeji Lateef who played the role of Awolaran, the son of the Bashorun of Oyo, said, “Every scene has a mood, and Kunle Afolayan will tell an actor the mood even with the lighting or with the camera angle even before a line ‘go’ comes out from the character itself. 

“Anikulapo: Rise of the Specter is a very relatable story. There is no way anyone will watch Anikulapo and won’t find something personal or that has to do with someone known or something that has happened around them. It speaks about politics, day-to-day activities and what is happening in the community.”

 Uzee Usman who played the role of Kuranga, said: “Anikulapo is refreshing. The Northern-Yoruba mixed character brought some flavour. He describes his role as challenging. “It was very challenging because Lateef and I had to rehearse fights for weeks, then we have to be in a particular frame of mind, a particular place for monitoring.”

Also, Eyiyemi Afolayan who played the role of Princess Omowunmi also described her role as challenging but has opened her up to the industry. “I just got into the industry. I am still trying to get used to acting along with the people I look up to in the industry so, I had to buddy my role. I had to match up to their capacity and just be natural with my role. I’m glad I had the opportunity to take on this role.”

When asked what she would do differently if she were asked to play the same character again, she said: “I will learn to speak Yoruba fluently but I don’t think I will do anything differently in terms of action.”

Gabriel Afolayan who played the role of Akin described the movie as a good standing for Nollywood industry. “Anikulapo is different in all facets; from the background of merging the veterans and the new guys and from the idea of holding the pillar.

“This project gives a feeling of what should be happening in the industry- love, comradeship, wanting to seek each other out, partying while working and letting us know that people are who they are, so it has given the job an offshoot of a big deal.

“This movie is relatable; it talks about love, friendship, politics, culture and betrayal, these are the things we experience every day. So, what the project has done was to replicate our lifestyles and then back it up with traditional and cultural factors. Anikulapo is not a total fiction but a diplomatic discussion between nations.”

Oyindamola Sanni, shares her role, describing it as challenging as well: “Anikulapo is intriguing. My role was challenging. The fact that I had to speak Yoruba all through and it was my first time playing a major role in one of my mentor’s movies. I was scared and the tension was much because I didn’t want to make any mistake. This project is a booster. Anikulapo has pushed my career.”

She revealed her most interesting scene thus: “The scene where I was happy to announce to my mom that I had somebody to get married to. I was pregnant and she told me that Saro was the same man she was in love with and had intimate moments with and that he was not alive. So, with the pregnancy, it was too late to turn back so, bringing emotions into one was a lot.”