The Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN) has declared a ban on film productions involving rivers and boat rides, following the tragic death of Nollywood actor Junior Pope and three crew members.
Earlier, several accounts from witnesses had suggested that Junior Pope was revived. However, the President of AGN, Emeka Rollas, said the actor is dead, prompting its suspension of shoots involving river bodies and boat rides.
“Following the tragic incident of the boat mishap that claimed the life of Mr John Paul Odonwodo aka Junior Pope and four other crew members, at the waterside of River Niger Cable point Asaba on 10 April 2024 on a movie set titled ‘The other side of Life’ produced by Adanma Luke, the leadership of the Guild has taken the following decisions:
(1) All films that involve riverine areas and boat riding are at this moment suspended indefinitely.
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(2) No shoot on all locations Nationwide on Thursday, 11 April 2024.
“(3)The film titled ‘Another Side of Life’ is suspended indefinitely
(4) No actor is allowed to work with Adanma Luke as a producer till further notice.
(5) While we keep searching for the bodies of the remaining persons, may their souls rest in peace,” the statement said.
The move is coming after the AGN president said the actor was alive even though several reports had confirmed Junior Pope’s death. He deleted the post on his Instagram handle hours later, posting another one where he said reconfirmed the actor’s death.
“It’s so sad that our joy was short-lived. My first post was out of excitement when we noticed his tingling fingers. Two notable hospitals tried their best to revive him but to no avail. God knows the best,” he said. “We finally lost him. Mr Friday’s corpse has been identified but three other corpses are yet to be found”
