Di last video wey Nigeria actor Junior Pope make for im more dan two million Instagram followers be like say e prophesy im death.

“You see di risks, pipo, we take to entertain you,” di 42-year-old shout above di noise of di motor as im small boat dey speed go for River Niger .

Im laff – e no clear weda na out of joy or say na becos im dey nervous – come tell di driver to slow down.

“I dey beg di captain, say I be di only pikin and I get three boys,” di actor – wey im real name na John Paul Odonwodo - tok as im notice wit alarm say water dey come inside di boat.

Di next day di Nollywood star die. Im drown inside di same river, afta one boat wey im bin dey travel inside from one shoot go jam one fishing canoe.

Four others, including film crew members, also die.

Di death of one of di biggest names for Nigeria ogbonge movie business for April – wit more dan 100 films under im belt – shock di industry.

Actors don dey speak out about Nollywood poor safety record and dem dey call for change.

Actors Guild of Nigeria immediately respond say dem go suspend all filming inside and around rivers indefinitely. Dem kon ask say make dem implement and observe safety standards.

Nollywood na di third largest film industry for di world – afta US Hollywood and India Bollywood.

E dey produce more dan 2,500 films a year – some by big, established production houses, but e still get many oda small companies wey dey enjoy one of di kontri veri big huge success stories.

One report from Nigerian Safety Investigations Bureau wey first comot last month on di capsizing find many coma: di driver no get certificate to operate di boat, dem no register di boat and na only one pesin bin wear lifejacket.

Dat passenger sef na im carry di life jacket by imsef come di boat – e follow for one of di eight survivors.

For one Instagram video wey dem bin post soon afta di incident, but wey dem don delete now, di film producer, Adanma Luke, say dem tell her say life jackets bin dey and dem even give Junior Pope one but im no take am.

“I don dey traumatised. My bodi cold no be small. Dis whole tin still be like dream to me. I wish say I fit wake up from dis dream,” she tok for di video.

She later write: “My heart dey shattered in pieces as I write dis… I find mysef dey pray, how we wan take turn back di hands of time?”

Ruth Kadiri – top actor, producer, and screenwriter – na friend of Junior Pope.

“Im bin dey happy, extremely hyper, and im dey always bring di positive energy… and I tink evribodi bin really love am,” she tok.

Incidents like dis one wey kill Junior Pope dey too common for Nollywood, Kadiri tell BBC What in di World podcast.

Di star, wey get more dan six million Instagram followers, bin remember one incident wen she almost drown as dem dey feem for water, wey make her tink about di fear wey di actor “gatz don feel for di last minute of im life”.

“I gatz shoot movie so we bin no fit use lifejackets.

“I ask di team if evritin dey ok and dem say di canoe dey fine. So I enta di boat, dem begin to paddle, and di canoe just tumble inside di river,” Kadiri tok.

Na one of her colleague save her by grabbing her inside di water.

Now, she dey call for change, though she understand say di temptation dey for actors wey wan do somtin potentially unsafe.

“We dey all do crazy tins for di love of dis work. We go do tins wey normally we no go do…

“As you grow, you learn to put your need first. Not becos you no like di production, but becos if somtin go wrong, dat na di end of it.”

Kadiri say di mata of safety na somtin wey concern di whole industry but whereas bigger productions wey get moni fit take measures, many smaller operations no fit afford di extra costs.

In order to improve tins, she suggest say make dem establish safety regulatory bodi wey get pipo on film sets.

“Di director dey tink about creating content, di actor dey tink about getting in character, so make we create extra bodi. E fit save a lot of stress.”

Actor Chidi Dike say Junior Pope death na “awakening to all”.

Im agree say “dem bin no dey take safety veri seriously”, but im tell BBC say some improvements don dey.

Im don notice say directors and producers dey now try to make sure say filming no dey enta night, wey bin mean dangerous night-time journeys back home in di past.

“Evritin dey risky... driving veri fast. E get one time wey I bin dey come home really late and I almost get accident. But e don beta now.”

But any change dey too late, of course, for Junior Pope.

Add all im plenty number of films, im leave us wit di final video on one boat di day bifor im drown – smiling, laughing and telling im fans about di risks wey im dey take to entertain dem.



Junior Pope bin dey travel inside dis boat di day wey im die, according to one official investigation