Renowned actor Van Vicker has shed light on why he turned down the lead role in LilWin’s film, A Country Called Ghana, despite being initially approached for the part. The role, which ultimately went to Nigerian actor Ramsey Noah, was intended for Vicker, who was to portray a British colonial master.
Vicker disclosed that when LilWin initially reached out to him, he was informed that his presence on set would be required for an entire month. At the time, as a student, Vicker found it challenging to commit to such an extended period. He proposed condensing his scenes into ten days, noting that a longer commitment would necessitate higher fees, which he doubted the production could afford.
“I said one month is too much. What are we filming? You should know that with actors, the more days you require, the more fees I will charge, so the earlier you finish, the better. So you need me for one month; are you sure you can pay me for one full month? I told him I can’t do the work because I’m in school,” Vicker explained.
LilWin, however, rejected the ten-day proposal, citing it would not align with the production’s schedule. Vicker was subsequently surprised to learn that Ramsey Noah was brought in from Nigeria and completed the role within the ten days he had originally suggested.
“I was left wondering because if he declined my ten-day proposal, how did he agree to Ramsey’s ten days and even cover all those extra fees?” Vicker remarked.
In a prior interview, LilWin had suggested that he found Vicker difficult to work with due to various restrictions he imposed, which led to the search for an alternative actor. “The movie was to be shot in 21 days, but the lead actor’s scene was just for 10 days. Even after negotiation, the Ghanaian actor said he cannot work on weekends, so he would be on set for just 8 days. Initially, I thought he wanted to make more monetary demands so I was ready, but he started becoming difficult to work with due to his many restrictions,” LilWin said.
