Biyi Bandele is Directing Ebonylife & Netflix’s Film Adaptation of “Death and the King’s Horseman”

Biyi Bandele is Directing Ebonylife & Netflix’s Film Adaptation of “Death and the King’s Horseman”

Biyi Bandele, an award-winning novelist and filmmaker, is directing Ebonylife and Netflix latest production, the screen adaptation of Wole Soyinka‘s “Death and the King’s Horseman“. The film is a period piece set in Nigeria in the 1940s.

The filmmaker who made his directorial debut with the film adaption of Chimamanda Adichie‘s “Half of a Yellow Sun,” has since directed films such as “Fifty” and the third season of MTV drama series, “Shuga“.  Half of a Yellow Sun was screened in the Special Presentation section at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival, while Fifty was included in the 2015 London Film Festival. 

Principal photography has kicked off for the adaptation of “Death and the King’s Horseman.”

Alongside Biyi Bandele is the legendary Lance Gewer, whose previous credits as Director of Photography include Tsotsi, the first African film not made in French to win an Oscar.

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According to CEO, EbonyLife Mo Abudu, “Death and the King’s Horseman is a play by Professor Wole Soyinka based on a real incident that took place in Nigeria during the colonial era: the horseman of a Yoruba King was prevented from committing ritual suicide by the colonial authorities”. 

While the cast for the film is yet to be announced, Mo Abudu confirmed that the new film is co-produced by Heidi Uys, Judith Audu, Quinty Pillay, Adeola Osunkujo and James Amuta. 

We can’t wait to see another Netflix exclusive.