Veteran Nollywood star and former Chairman of the Actors Guild of Nigeria, Lagos chapter, Victor Osuagwu, speaks to VICTORIA EDEME on his rise to fame in the Nigerian film industry
At this point in your life, how do you perceive life?
I’ve always perceived life from a positive perspective. As time goes on, things will continue to change. Life changes but I’ve always seen it positively. Challenges are bound to happen but it depends on how such challenges are handled. But whatever life throws at me, I take it with the spirit of a sportsman.
Where were you born and what was your childhood like?
I’ll use this opportunity to correct an impression. Previous publications had reported that I was born and brought up in Lagos but that is false. I am from Mbaise in Imo State and that is where I was born. I’m from a family of three girls and two boys. I am the youngest. I was born in Imo State but I grew up in Rivers State. My mum is from Rivers State and I grew up with my grandmother in Queens’ Town, Opobo. I did part of my primary school in Rivers State before going back to Imo to complete my primary education and enrol in a secondary school that was in my Udu autonomous community. I moved on to study Theatre Arts at the University of Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
Would you say you’ve always known that you were going to be an actor?
It has been a bubble right inside me, waiting to burst. From childhood, I had known myself to be entertaining people in my community, youth organisations, and during church activities. It has been in me, so I went further to gain more knowledge about the art I had chosen for myself. When I was in secondary school, I saw myself as one who would become an architect because it was a technical school. However, it was still noticeable that I was a born entertainer. I used to play football but I stopped and became the chairman of the fan club in the school, supporting other players with music and clapping.
Having grown up in Rivers and Imo states, when did you come to settle in Lagos and why?
I came to Lagos after my youth service. I served in the NTA (Nigerian Television Authority) in Ondo State. That was in 1996. So I came to Lagos in 1997. I came to Lagos because Lagos is the hub of entertainment. For anyone who is craving to make it in life, especially in entertainment, you must always think of Lagos first. I also had a friend in Lagos then, so that opportunity was there for me to come to Lagos.
How did you begin your journey into Nollywood?
I went in search of where I could find myself in filmmaking because then, filmmaking had started and a lot of jobs were produced then. In I994, when I was in my final year, there was a strike that took place for almost eight months. During that strike, I and some of my course mates left school to visit Lagos to find jobs. We also got involved in some productions then. We met Ejike Asiegbu, who had earlier graduated from the Theatre Arts Department at UNIPORT. So, we knew of the audition of ‘Evil Passion 2’. We all went for the audition and I got a role. That was my first movie. While the job was on, we were still going to auditions and that was when we heard that Amaka Igwe had an audition for ‘Rattlesnake’. I auditioned too and got a role, but while we were preparing for the shoot, the strike was called off and I went back to school. I, however, featured in one or two scenes in ‘Rattlesnake 2’.
What movie shot you into the limelight?
It’s very difficult for me to ascertain the particular movie that shot me into the limelight. I got myself involved in so many other jobs, but there was a particular one where I played the lead role, ‘Our Daily Bread’, that movie featured my face alone on the poster. That should be in 2001. ‘One Dollar’ was another blockbuster. These two jobs made a great impact on my Nollywood journey.
You have featured more in comic roles in movies. How did that come about?
You must take advantage of where you can best express yourself. I believe the producers and directors just see me as a very comic character. I sell more on that.
Have there been times when you were not taken seriously because of your comic roles?
That is a prevalent circumstance. People may not be seeing me as a serious character but inside me, I’m a very serious person.
You were once the chairman of the Lagos branch of the Actors Guild of Nigeria. Why did you decide to go for that position?
I needed to do something that would make people see me as a very serious person. I took up that challenge to go for the position and see what I could deliver to the people. They saw my personality and knew that there was a wide gap between who I was and my roles in movies.
What were your achievements in office?
I came in when the chapter was battling with leadership, even at the national level. There were different factions in the chapter then, but I succeeded in diminishing those factions. Apart from making peace among the warring factions, I worked with some of my executive council members to reposition the guild for visibility and acceptance. I created programmes for free medical checkups and tests in line with the insurance policy of the national body. The chapter established a corporate office, which became accessible to researchers and international visitors. Other initiatives established under my administration included workshops, seminars, symposiums, Actors Week, and Mr & Mrs AGN, among others.
What will you say about the current Nollywood industry? Do you think it is different from the time you started?
There have been great improvements. In those days, we had few TV stations but now there are more marketing opportunities like social media, Netflix, Prime Video, and the rest. I also see a difference in the attitude to our preparation for work. In those days, there was always rehearsal before the main shoot. If you worked with someone like Amaka Igwe, you would tend to rehearse for almost two months. During script reading and rehearsal, the actors would be familiar with the roles and other actors they are shooting with. Unlike now when scripts are given and only a pre-shoot rehearsal is done before the main shoot. I can write a script now and once there’s money, I can start my shooting in two days.
The absence of such rehearsal is giving way to other things. These days, actors come to the set without knowing what the movie is about. There was great preparation for the shoot then, unlike how it is now. However, the film Industry has expanded, giving rise to many independent producers and filmmakers making blockbuster movies and box office hits. We have more trained professionals, including directors, scriptwriters, and producers, among others.
Can you share more information about your marital life?
I am married and I have kids, both boys and girls. I did my wedding in 2012 and before then, I had already paid my wife’s bride price around 2003. What delayed the ceremony was my mother-in-law’s death after a protracted illness and other occurrences. Even before the ceremony, I had already concluded childbearing. I made a promise to myself that since the wedding was delayed, I’d surely wed my wife once my last child clocked five. While my last daughter was almost five, I started preparations and my wife’s family gave me a date. My children were on my bridal train.
A double axle tipper lorry conveyed my wife and me on our wedding day in Rivers State. That was my plan because I wanted something people would talk about. While we were having a photo session after the church wedding, the decorated tipper lorry was driven into the compound. When we were about to leave for the reception ground, my wife asked which car we were using and that was when I told her that the tipper lorry would be conveying us. She was also surprised but was even the first person to climb into the tipper lorry after a ladder was brought. My best man, Francis Duru, and his wife, who was also my wife’s chief bridesmaid, also got on the tipper lorry with us. We started waving our hands and it caused excitement among the guests. As the tipper lorry was going from Port Harcourt to Chioba, there was traffic as everybody joined behind the tipper lorry and formed a long convoy. It was an entertaining wedding, more than I expected.
How did you meet your wife and how did you know she was the right one for you?
I met my wife in her compound in Chioba, Rivers State, when I was in year one at the university in 1990. She was in secondary school then. I escorted my friend to where he was living outside school and I saw her in the compound. When I saw her for the first time, I noticed how pretty she was. Immediately, I told her she would be my wife. The instant I saw her, I knew that was the kind of woman I needed. Since that day, I concluded that I’d found a wife. I encouraged her to finish up her secondary school education. She did a diploma in Theatre Arts at UNIPORT just like me, but when she gained admission for her bachelor’s degree, she studied Political Science and Administration. She is a great actress who did excellently well on stage, but she never acted in movies.
Why didn’t she delve into full-time acting?
It was her choice and there was no time for that. In her 100-level in the university, she had already given birth to our first son, who is now a graduate of a Canadian university.
Is he the one who appeared in a recent viral video with you?
That’s not my son. The boy just looked like my son. We met on a set and I came up with a concept. It went viral and people thought he was my son, even bloggers reported it. But he is not my son.
What’s the usual reaction of your children to your comic roles?
My children are very intelligent. They don’t probe me about my roles. Rather, they make comments on my roles when they watch my movies. They are my teachers and the best critics I have. They are my best admirers. My best fans are my immediate family members.
What is your secret to a lasting marriage, seeing the current wave of divorce in society, especially among entertainers?
I don’t advocate divorce but it can be done when it becomes necessary to do so. Marriage is all about joy and fortune, but when it brings about sorrow and violence, it is best to quit so that one can stay alive. It could be that the marriage was not built on a foundation, which God had already laid. Marriage should be built on trust and understanding. I trust and understand my wife so much and she is always ready to take my advice. When she advises me too, I take her advice. It goes beyond love. There is no perfect relationship. Sometimes, it is a third party that destroys the marriage. Sometimes, parents also contribute to the destruction of marriages. Some mothers do not advise their children.
What is your advice to newer celebrities in the industry?
Convince yourself first that acting is your specialty and that God has given you the special talent to make your life better. The A-list actors did not just become superstars overnight. They passed through thorns and roses. It’s a gradual process and should not be forced. Some actors had to abandon their lucrative jobs to come into the industry and they got frustrated when they came in. What makes you a superstar is what is inside you. Don’t borrow someone’s idea. The overall thing is the grace of God. It shouldn’t be a do-or-die affair. These days, actors pay producers and directors for them to get involved in a production where they are supposed to be paid. Some even pay to get a script and to be featured on the poster of a project. This is because of the insatiability that has been moulded before they came into the industry. Consistency is also key. You will face discouragements but you should not be deterred by that.
What are you most fulfilled about?
Being alive is the most fulfilling thing about my life. I also feel fulfilled because I was able to find myself in what I love so much. I’ve met a lot of people and doors have been opened for me.
