Fast & Furious 7
FOLLOWING the death of Paul Walker in 2013, there was a big delay in the release of the 7th installment of Fast and Furious movies, which has now been fixed for April 10, 2015.
A glimpse of the film’s trailer was released in November 2014 by distribution company, Universal Pictures, which further assuaged fans’ thirst for the box office hit.
It will called that after the sudden death of Walker who was the series’ key actor, fans of the movies have been more interested in watching Fast and Furious 7, which was ongoing before the actor’s demise.
Expectedly, to see Walker again, for the last time, in a big screen is surely an effective marketing strategy for the movie because many have been waiting for this.
Walker’s co-star Vin Diesel, reportedly felt “emotional and bittersweet” after watching the movie’s trailer. “We all went above and beyond to make Pablo proud, but man, I wish he could see what we have created and just how far we have come,” he said in an interview.
Tyrese Gibson, a singer and actor, is one of the first set of people who confirmed the release of the movie’s trailer on social media. In a report, Gibson, like Diesel, has been emotional after watching the new trailer.
Reports say to be able to finish the movie, franchise producers asked Paul Walker’s brother, Caleb and Cody Walker, who share the same look as Paul, to stand for their brother in the unfinished scenes. Keen eyes will surely notice the difference between the Walkers even with the aid of computer technology.
Aside from Paul Walker, his brother who stood as his double, and Vin Diesel, Fast and Furious 7 will include the majority of the series’ cast. On the other hand, the movie has a new director James Wan. It was Justin Lin who was credited for the Fast and Furious’ precious success but it was Wan who was responsible for the movie’s seventh installment.
Reports say there is high hope for Universal Pictures, the movie’s distributor, to be able to regain its big investments on the franchise, because according to sources, projecting the potential gross of films these days is rather difficult, especially for major sequels.
Incidentally, there was a drop in the domestic box office figure by $500 million last year, when compared to that of 2013. This, movie pundits have linked this shortfall to the fact that Fast and Furious 7 and a few other films were not released in 2014. In fact, the shortfall is considered the lowest domestic box office total since 2008, which was the last time the total domestic box office didn’t quite top $10 billion total.
It is safe to say that not only are fans of the series eager to see how Walker’s double will play out this April, investors have reasoned that since Fast Five earned $209 million domestic in 2011 while Fast & Furious 6 earned $238m domestic in 2013, there is much to expect from Fast & Furious 7 this year.
DESMOND ELLIOT
AFTER witnessing the fall of so many entertainers on the way to primary elections last year, not only did Desmond Elliot scale through, vying for a position in the Lagos State House of Assembly put him ahead of his contemporaries, considering that Lagos is the hotbed of entertainment business.
Elliot is indeed a guy to watch out for, because apart from his high chances of winning the Surulere Constituency 1 seat, as a member of South West leading party, the All Progressives Alliance (APC), his success will further re-define whether Nigerians should see successful entertainers as successful politicians.
Elliot defeated Mr. Kabiru Lawal to grab the ticket.
On the other hand, Kenny Saint Best (KSB), who contested in the primaries to represent Ikeja Constituency, was not as fortunate as Elliot, having lost the bid to Mr. Folajimi Mohammed, son of National Publicity Secretary of APC, Alhaji Lai Mohammed.
DON JAZZY
AFTER his breakup from Mo’hits, a label he jointly ran with former partner, Dapo Oyebanjo, aka D’banj, Mavins Records, the new outfit by Michael Collins, otherwise called Don Jazzy made unprecedented impact in 2014. Dr Sid’s Surulere, Tiwa Savage’s Eminado and the Mavins Crew’s Dorobucci, were quite popular, earning the ‘beats don’ the Producer of the Year laurel at the last edition of Headies Awards. With his plotting of the rise of the Mavins Crew in 2014, which somewhat looks like a start, the prospect is high for Don Jazzy and his group in 2015.
FEMI KUTI
THE unveiling of Afro beat legend, Femi Kuti, by popular music label, Chocolate City, as its latest addition late last year, can only begin to yield dividends in 2015.
Kuti, who was excited to enter a management deal with a Nigerian company for the first time, saw a reason to increase his fan base in Nigeria and by extension, Africa, after conquering the world.
Femi and his younger brother Seun have always complained of having more deals abroad than in Nigeria. In fact, Seun records that while he had played over 200 shows abroad within last year, he had not done more than two shows in Nigeria in the last two years.
“Ever since I signed that contract, I have not regretted it. I see them as an extended family of my life, I see them as my brothers and sisters and when I met their chairman, he impressed me as well. I just want to say that I will put in 100 percent of my time to make sure that I give you the best of my music,” said Femi Kuti.
No doubt, the deal with Kuti is a big one for the profile of the music label, which president of the label, Audu Maikori, believes is in tandem with his company’s vision for cultural promotion
“Mr. Kuti has been celebrated internationally, may be much more than he has been celebrated locally, and there is need for us to bring this culture back home, because this is where he started from. We have done so much in terms of promoting Nigerian culture and the creative industry has done much in promoting the culture of Nigeria, whether you talk of Nollywood or the music industry, there is really no greater ambassadors than these set of people.”
He noted that although it is a business partnership, the synergy is more of a passion than “naira and kobo’.
In recent times, Kuti has done a lot of shows with younger artistes. Apart from a duet with Wizkid on the latter’s Jaiye Jaiye single, the multiple Grammy Award-nominee had also done collaborations with D’banj, Omawumi, Victoria Kimani, Buffalo Soulja, Yvonne Chaka Chaka, Fally Ipupa and several other young African artistes on the One/DO Agric Project, a project staged in support of the slogan of African Union for 2014, a period declared as year of Agriculture and food security.
With the new deal with the young vibrant company, Femi Kuti is sure to be more visible in Nigeria and other parts of Africa this year.
KUNLE AFOLAYAN
WITH 13 nominations at the Africa Magic Viewers’ Choice Awards (AMVCA), Kunle Afolayan and his October 1 movie are worth watching out for in 2015.
The movie and cast and crew bagged the highest nominations in this awards scheme, making it one of the much-anticipated motion picture works in Africa this year.
It will be recalled that in November of last year, the film, a psychological thriller, proved the ‘alpha male’ among over 75 films in competition at the Africa International Film Festival (AFRIFF), which held in Calabar, Cross River State. It won three diadems, including the Best Feature Film award, Best Lead Actor and Best Screenplay.
Although it was the first competitive award the film has won since its historic release in the cinemas on October 1st, last year. It could be said that the film came with great promises, as, prior to its release, its trailer won the Best Fiction Film Trailer at the International Movie Trailers Festival in 2013, while Afolayan himself received two awards; the ‘Creative Entrepreneur in Filmmaking’ and ‘Overall Creative Entrepreneur’ by the British Council in Nigeria, early last year.
Apart from the much-awaited AMVCA, this year is also a year of festival circuits for the film.
LUPITA NYONG’O
ONE of the outcomes of Kenyan actress, Lupita Nyong’o’s win at last year’s Oscars, was her inclusion among the cast of J.J Abrams’ Star Wars: Episode 7. The movie is set to hit the theatres on December 18 this year.
Last year was a veritable awards-season for the ‘Cinderella’. In only a few short months, Lupita Nyong’o went from being a complete unknown to a red-carpet princess, applauded for both her impeccable fashion sense and her undeniable acting abilities. The 31-year-old, who was born of Kenyan parents in Mexico City, raised in Nairobi and then graduated from the Yale School of Drama in 2012, triumphed at the 86th Academy Awards, where she was awarded the Oscar as best supporting actress for her unflinching performance as Patsey in Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave.
Will the actress ascend to the A-list of Hollywood this year; just as Jennifer Lawrence did after her best actress win for Silver Linings Playbook in 2013? Analysts have said that this might not be easy. They reasoned that even though there have been a handful of African-American actors, from Sidney Poitier to Eddie Murphy, Denzel Washington and Will Smith, who have reached that status, there’s never been a black actress who has become the equivalent of a Julia Roberts or Angelina Jolie. Whoopi Goldberg came closest, following her best actress Oscar nomination for 1985’s The Color Purple and supporting actress win for 1990’s Ghost, but despite an occasional hit like 1992’s Sister Act, she didn’t maintain that momentum. Hollywood also flirted with Angela Bassett, Thandie Newton, Halle Berry and, most recently, Mandela’s Naomie Harris, without ushering any of them into its very top tier.
However, whether or not Nyong’o makes it to the very tops of Hollywood, the African cinema appears to be a sure platform. The Oscar winner is to team up with her 12 Years a Slave co-star and producer, Brad Pitt, for a Nigerian immigrant tale, Americanah, based on the novel by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, funded by Pitt’s Plan B outfit.
“It is such an honour to have the opportunity to bring Ms Adichie’s brilliant book to the screen,” Nyong’o said. “Page after page, I was struck by Ifemelu and Obinze’s stories, whose experiences as African immigrants are so specific and also so imminently relatable. It is a thrilling challenge to tell a truly international story so full of love, humour and heart.”
TAYO FANIRAN
NIGERIAN housemate in the last Big Brother Hotshots, Tayo Faniran, was confident of the personality he put in during the 63-day show; saying that although he didn’t win the money, there are ample chances for him in the creative industry in Africa.
“With what I have seen so far, it is clear I won the contest and Idris merely got the money. The love I have been shown by fans is enormous; and there is no better way to win,” he said during a welcome party in Lagos.
Tayo, who came second place in the competition, said he was shocked when Idris Sultan, the housemate from Tanzania was declared winner of the reality show.
However, he was undeterred, as he explained that the interaction with other Africans in the Big Brother house and the exposure to the rich and diverse cultures in Africa have adequately prepared him to further pursue a career in acting, singing and as a TV presenter.
He said: “I was really shocked when IK declared Idris the winner of the show. I genuinely thought I would win, or at least be declared a co-winner! Nonetheless I’m incredibly grateful for the unique opportunity and exposure Big Brother has given me. All I can tell Nigerians, Africa and the rest of the world now is ‘watch this space!’”
The Oyo State-born contestant, who revealed that he has since been planning to relocate to Nigeria, said new developments in his career have provided the opportunity.
The model said people should not be surprised if they see him acting in different genres of films as well as other creative works that his talents can accommodate.
