The official poster for Kunle Afolayan's Netflix series, Anikulapo: Rise of the Spectre has been unveiled.
Afolayan released them on his Instagram earlier today. The series is a spinoff of the original Netflix film, Anikulapo.
The image reveals Kunle Remi, Bimbo Ademoye, Sola Sobowale, Ogogo Taiwo Hassan and Eyiyemi Afolayan, as returning cast on this project, as well as new faces like Lateef Adedimeji, Uzee Usman, Gabriel Afolayan, and Owo Ogunde.
The series will drop later this year, as a four-part Netflix original after the success of the first film in 2022.
When the original was released, it ranked number 1 globally on Netflix with 8,730,000 views in less than 2 weeks. Also, it emerged as the star of the 2023 Africa Magic Viewers' Choice Awards (AMVCA), with multiple awards for Best Movie in Africa, Best Writer and Best Soundtrack.
The movie tells the story of Saro (played by Remi), who arrived in Oyo as a stranger and a traditional textile weaver. Saro and Queen Arolake (played by Ademoye) are caught in a forbidden romance as she is an unhappy wife to the king. The two run away and Saro soon becomes a man of influence after being saved from death by a mysterious bird. The lovers are torn apart by Saro's betrayal. It ends with Arolake disappearing after destroying what made him powerful.
Other cast members that have been announced for the series include Adebayo Salami, Layi Wasabi, Moji Afolayan, Aisha Lawal, Ronke Oshodi, Jide Kosoko, Adeniyi Johnson and Funky Mallam.
Anikulapo: Rise of the Spectre was created by KAP Motion Pictures in partnership with Golden Effects Pictures, and features an extensive team of over 600 cast and crew members. It wrapped up principal photography in July 2023.