Fresh off the global success of Iyanu, creator and showrunner Roye Okupe is now expanding his Afro-Anime universe with his next major project: Malika: Warrior Queen, an anime-inspired feature film based on Okupe’s award-winning Dark Horse graphic novel, in collaboration with The Co-Production Company.
Set in a richly imagined 15th-century West African empire, this feature film is a tale of power, family, and destiny—a story about a young queen’s rise from tragedy to legend as she unites a divided land under her rule. The film combines the emotional precision of anime with the soul and rhythm of African storytelling, blending breathtaking action, political intrigue, and a visual style inspired by the pulse of Afrobeats.
With this project, Okupe continues to build on the global Afro-Anime movement, redefining how African stories are told on the world stage. Produced by Doug Schwalbe (The Co-Production Company) and multiple Emmy Award-winner Randy Dormans (Kung Fu Panda, Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous), Malika: Warrior Queen brings together a powerhouse team of global talent. Nigerian actress Adesua Etomi-Wellington (The Wedding Party) stars as the voice of Malika and serves as executive producer, alongside Impact X Studios’ Erica Motley and Okupe via his YouNeek Studios banner.
Okupe who is set to write and direct said, “Malika’s journey mirrors the creative fight so many of us face: the struggle to lead with strength while still holding onto empathy, to build something lasting while carrying the weight of our past. I want audiences around the world to feel Africa in every frame and to recognize that these are not just African stories. They’re human stories.”
Malika is part of the acclaimed YouNeek YouNiverse — a collection of African-inspired fantasy graphic novels rooted in history and mythology, published and distributed by Dark Horse Comics. In 2021, after five years of successful self-publishing, Okupe signed a 20-book deal with Dark Horse. Since 2016, more than 100,000 copies of Malika comics and graphic novels have been sold worldwide.
Schwalbe, founder and president of The Co-Production Company, commented: “By teaming with Randy Dormans, we can bring TV economics to feature film production while delivering Royes’ unique storytelling through elevated traditional 2D animation.“
The film is currently in development, with Okupe now penning the screenplay and pre-production gearing up to begin soon.
