GHANA: Nigerian veteran actor Kanayo O. Kanayo has delivered a stern message to Ghanaian actors who demand equal pay with their Nigerian counterparts on movie sets.
Speaking to Ghanaian media upon his arrival in Accra for a film project produced by Ghanaian actor and filmmaker Kwadwo Nkansah, popularly known as Lil Win, Kanayo O. Kanayo, also known as KOK and Nnanyi Sacrifice, criticised the growing practice of some Ghanaian actors demanding fees comparable to those paid to established Nigerian stars before agreeing to collaborate on productions.
“I am KOK. I was among the founding fathers. You now wake up in Ghana…They call KOK to come and act in Ghana; you Ghanaian boy, will now insist they pay you the same fees as me. It happens even up to today. There is hierarchy even in heaven. In the movie industry, there is hierarchy,” he stated.
KOK advised Ghanaian actors to focus on negotiating their own contracts rather than comparing themselves with others. “Negotiate what you want to be paid. Don’t equate yourself with me. Tell your Ghanaian brothers and sisters, it is not your business what they pay Nigerian actors. Go and negotiate your own, receive it and go and rest, and then you will have peace in your life; otherwise, I will invoke Amadioha,” he warned.
The seasoned actor revealed that the issue even arose in the current production he is working on in Ghana and hinted he could name some of the actors involved but was persuaded not to.
KOK’s comments have sparked conversations around respect, hierarchy, and pay equity in the West African film industry.
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The comments come as Kanayo joins fellow Nollywood stars Patience Ozokwor, Mike Ezuruonye, Zubby Michael, Charles Awurum and Destiny Etiko in Ghana for Lil Win’s upcoming movie, Journey to Africa (Nzulezu). The cross-border production, being produced under Lil Win’s Wezzy Empire banner, features actors from Ghana and Nigeria and will showcase the historic Nzulezu community in Ghana’s Western Region.
