Nollywood ‘bad’ boy, Saint Obi, was one of the great actors in the 1990s. There was hardly any action flick released without a cameo appearance from this stud.
However, in an exclusive interview with Saturday Beats, the actor said it had always been his dream to become an actor. He said that he had two major reasons why he became a thespian.
“I am not one of the accidental actors in Nollywood. As a child, I had always wanted to be an actor. I was drawn to acting because of the fantasies. As a child, I grew up watching American movies and I used to love the actors I saw on screen. As I grew older, I found out that I could be successful without venturing into crime. I found out that it was a very plausible platform to become a millionaire without bribing anybody. All you need is your talent and God’s grace. That made acting more compelling for me.
“The other key factor that made me become an actor was to stay away from crime and to become a rich man. It was not easy convincing my parents because back in the days, people saw us as jokers and people without future ambition. I had some of my sisters who were in America and I knew that it would take luck for me to break into Hollywood. I knew it was not a joke, so I stayed put in Nigeria. My father died before I gained admission into the university, so it was not too difficult convincing my mother that I wanted to study Theatre Arts in the University of Jos. Although my mother is dead, she was very happy that I chose this path,” he said.
Since nothing has been heard of Saint Obi in recent times, most people feel the younger actors have taken the shine off him.
However, the actor was quick to correct what he described as an erroneous thought. He explained that he has been working behind the scene in order to make Nollywood better.
“I have not quit acting and the beauty of our profession is that as long as you are sane and you can control your cognitive faculties, then you can act till you die. As you grow older, there are roles waiting for you. I would not lie, I miss the glory days. I want to make better movies and use better props but after doing that, can I get my money back? The activity of pirates at the moment is at an all-time high. If you want to make movies right now, you have to think carefully and understand the strategies. If you invest N50m in making movies, you would want to recoup your money back. I miss being in front of the screen but whatever I am doing now is more important because I am working towards making things better so that when I appear in front of the screen, I am sure it is for better days,” Saint Obi said. – Culled from Punch. Interview by Ademola Olonilua and Eric Dumo.
