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The Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN) has made clear its reasons for not taking legal action against filmmaker Adanma Luke following the tragic passing of actor Junior Pope during the filming of Luke’s movie, “Other Side of Life.”

AGN president Emeka Rollas revealed that the guild did not have the legal grounds to sue based on the contract signed between Pope and the producer. The legal advisor suggested that only direct family members or spouses could initiate a lawsuit.

Junior Pope met his untimely death in a boating mishap while returning from the movie set.

In response to this tragic event, the AGN suspended Adanma Luke due to safety protocol infractions and temporarily banned filming involving water bodies. These measures were taken to help prevent a recurrence of such a tragedy. The ban against Adanma was lifted in August.

Emeka Rollas also disclosed that Junior Pope was not a fully paid member of the AGN at the time of his demise. He announced plans to introduce actor licensing to improve adherence to guild dues.

Rollas also highlighted the need to reform compensation structures within the Nigerian film industry, noting the lack of systems for royalties and residuals for actors.

Without these financial systems, actors are vulnerable, especially when facing health issues.

Read the full statement below, according to Emeka Rollas,  President of the Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN)

“We will begin licensing actors because we also discovered that even Junior Pope was not a due-paying guild member as of his death. He was a big actor who had not paid dues in the last year before his death,” he said.

He added, “So now if we change, if we begin to upgrade and say look, you can be active in Nigeria, you can work on, you can be involved in what you’re doing, but you must have a license to practice. And that license you’re given means you are eligible to get everything you need because you have a permit.”

“We know that in Nigeria today, we have many big companies making films here, and nobody is talking about royalties or residuals paid to actors, which is the major source of an actor’s income.” He emphasized that the absence of these systems leaves Nigerian actors vulnerable, especially when prominent actors face health challenges.

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“You see big names when they fall sick, they don’t get any help because their financial remuneration from the work they do does not extend to royalties and residuals,” Rollas said. He reiterated the importance of restructuring the industry to ensure that actors are financially supported and protected.