Kunle Afolayan announces plan to marry multiple wives once he perfects his divorce
Cites father as inspiration
Nigerian filmmaker Kunle Afolayan has sparked widespread reactions online after revealing that he is seeking to perfect a divorce from his wife, Tolu, in order to freely marry multiple women.
Afolayan made the disclosure while speaking at a watch party for his latest film, Aníkúlápó: The Ghoul Awakens, where he attributed his decision to his upbringing in a polygamous home.
“For the men, marry many women, or rather be involved with many women. You know why? If my father didn’t, he would not have born me, and that is the honest truth. But today, a few of us are lifting his legacy. Life is short, death is constant. Nobody has life forever. Everybody has a period. Use your period,” he said.
The filmmaker further disclosed in a viral video that he is already taking legal steps to end his marriage.
“I am in and out of court seeking a divorce. I don’t mind the toll. So I can marry many wives now,” Afolayan stated.
His comments have triggered heated debate on social media, with many Nigerians recalling his earlier opposition to polygamy.
Shift from earlier stance
In a 2021 interview, Afolayan had openly criticised the practice, citing the struggles he witnessed while growing up in his father’s large polygamous household.
“I would not want to marry many wives because my father had 10 wives, and I knew what happened throughout that period. I knew that really distracted my father,” he said at the time.
He also noted that managing a family of 25 children across different cultural and language backgrounds made unity difficult.
Despite those experiences, the award-winning filmmaker now credits his late father’s lifestyle for his personal and professional success.
“Without my father, there wouldn’t be a KAP Village or even Kunle Afolayan. I am the seventh child of my father because he had ten wives,” he said.
The contrasting views have left fans divided, with some criticising the move as contradictory, while others defended his right to make personal choices.
