Kunle Afolayan’s Anikulapo emerges Best African Series at Ghana Movie Awards

By Folashade Olorunfemi –

Nigerian filmmaker Kunle Afolayan has celebrated another milestone for his Anikulapo franchise after it won the Best African Series award at the 15th Ghana Movie Awards held in Accra on Monday.

Ghanaian actress Fella Makafui also clinched the Best Actress award in the same category. Afolayan announced the achievement on Instagram on Tuesday, sharing photos and videos from the event.

“The award-winning Akande Kwesi Afolayan. Last night in Accra, Ghana, our series #AnikulapoTheMovie won the Best African Series on Netflix, and @fellamakafui won Best Actress in the same category. Congratulations to the cast and crew,” he wrote.

The awards ceremony, held at the Kempinski Hotel Gold Coast City, was themed “Rewarding African Excellence” and brought together actors, filmmakers, influencers and media personalities from across the continent.

Notable guests at the event included Kunle Afolayan, Priscilla Opoku Agyeman and fashion icon Nana Akua Addo.

The latest recognition adds to the franchise’s growing list of achievements. In 2023, Anikulapo won five awards at the Africa Magic Viewers’ Choice Awards, including Best Overall Movie.

Originally released in 2022 as a Netflix film directed and produced by Afolayan, Anikulapo follows the story of Saro, a travelling cloth weaver whose life changes after he gains access to a mystical power capable of resurrecting the dead.

Following the film’s success, Afolayan expanded the story into Anikulapo: Rise of the Spectre in 2024 and later released Anikulapo: The Ghoul Awakens in January 2026. He has indicated that more instalments are expected, with each series contributing to an interconnected storyline.