Nollywood actor Deyemi Okanlawon has given fans a deeper look into why he once stepped away from acting, and the story is more personal than many expected.
Speaking on the CreativiTea podcast, Deyemi explained that he left the industry in 2019 because the money simply did not match the effort he was putting in. He said the standard of work around him also left much to be desired at the time.
He recalled that he had walked away from a stable nine to five job to pursue acting, so settling for what he called “mediocre work” was never part of the plan. According to him, waking up each day for such low reward work became draining, and he questioned the point of pursuing a passion that left him unfulfilled. That struggle eventually pushed him back into regular employment.
He returned to the corporate world, taking up a marketing role at Silverbird Film Distribution. He rose to lead the company’s Nollywood distribution desk and later became acting CEO when the substantive CEO relocated during the COVID 19 pandemic.
While he settled into his new role, calls kept coming in from top filmmakers who wanted him back on set. He named Mo Abudu, Kemi Adetiba, Jade Osiberu, Funke Akindele and Kunle Afolayan as some of the industry heavyweights who reached out. He said he turned them down for a while, insisting he was done with acting.
He finally gave in and returned to set in 2021. His role in Funke Akindele’s Omo Ghetto: The Saga is widely seen as the project that fully relaunched his career, opening the door to the steady, high profile work he has enjoyed since.
Deyemi is known for being open about his career journey. He has spoken before about how a lack of social media followers slowed his rise, and about nearly choosing the priesthood over acting as a child. His latest comments add fresh context to how tough Nollywood’s pay structure has been for even its established faces.
