Mixed Reactions Trail Announcement of Idris Elba-led Adaptation of ‘Things Fall Apart’

The part of the production details that has caused controversy is Idris Elba playing the novel’s central character, Okonkwo. Elba, the Britain-born actor of Ghanaian and Sierra Leonean descent, is a curious choice to play an Igbo man in south-east Nigeria during colonial times. He’s also one of the series’ executive producers, alongside British Nigerian actor David Oyelowo, Achebe Masterworks, and more.

Some of the immediate reactions to Elba starring as Okonkwo have centered on the plain fact that he’ll need to play his role with an accent, which may have already reduced the series’ authenticity. The comments on X (fka Twitter) so far have ranged from painfully concerned to humorously annoyed. “Okonkwo is going to have a shitty African accent, this is the worst day of my f****** life!” @thehookprincess wrote — all caps — in a post, blaming Nollywood for prioritizing “Poor production, shitty scripts and IG skitmakers!!”

Another user, @neosvy wrote, “Oh some more ‘Agu deez are the men dah kih ur fada,’” referencing the melange of nebulous “African” accents that were a huge part of the two Black Panther films. The line particularly, is from Beasts Of No Nation, the 2015 film where Elba played a warlord in a fictional West African country.

Some others believe Elba playing Okonkwo is something akin to gentrification. “So instead of Idris [Elba] and David [Oyelowo] to do the thing they said their production companies would [do] in Africa; support local talent. They decide instead to platform themselves and desecrate classic Nigerian literature,” @Vanessa_ohaha wrote in an X post, adding that “I know there are business/funding considerations but [for God’s sake] Nigerian Culture/language and art isn’t a joke.” in a follow-up post.

This is the second time this week Elba is coming under the intense, sardonic scrutiny of Nigerians online. On Monday, Afrobeats superstar Asake released a short film for his recent album, Lungu Boy, and it featured a voiceover by the actor, in which he butchered pronunciations of words in Pidgin and Yoruba phrases. Several people referred to Elba’s integral role in the short film as “cringeworthy.”

But there are others who believe Elba’s lead role in the series adaptation is a net positive thing, considering that his popularity will draw in more eyes to watch the show when it’s out. “This is a good thing for Igbo culture whether we like who is doing it or not. It takes a proper African culture mainstream instead of all the Wakanda nonsense,” tech entrepreneur Victor Asemotasays.

“On this “Things Fall Apart” matter, David Oyelowo is Nigerian, Dayo Ogunyemi [series executive producer] is Nigerian. We have a few Nigerians in the room, that is a good thing. A24 is a good studio, that is a good thing too,” filmmaker Blessing Uzziwrote in her post.

Also, it’s clear Elba, A24 and their partners are working with the blessings of the Achebe family. “Over the moon about this,” Nwando Achebe, daughter of Chinua Achebe, wrote in an X post. “My only wish, that dad could have been here to see this!”

While there are those disappointed that this is not a homegrown production centering a Nigerian lead and a widely Nigerian team, some, like The Black Book director Editi Effiong and film editor Martini Akande, looked at it from the cost implication side, noting that Nollywood filmmakers didn’t have access to the same financial resources Elba and his partners have.

This is not the first time Things Fall Apart will be adapted for the screen. In 1971, German filmmaker Jason Pohland directed a film of the same title, but it was only recently rediscovered after being lost for decades. More notably, during the golden era of Nigerian television in the 1980s, the iconic Pete Edochie starred as Okonkwo (a name he is still widely associated with today) in a hugely successful miniseries of the same title, which was broadcast around Nigeria by the Nigerian Television Authority.

There are no details on who’s writing the upcoming series or where viewers can watch, but it will no doubt be graced by a wide audience eager to see how one of the most iconic books in African literature is adapted for the small screen.