Imo State-born actor with an entrepreneurial approach to life, Enyinna Nwigwe, who from his early days in University of Calabar, ventured into fashion, and later Nollywood, has talked on career, marriage, women and many more.
Enyinna Nwigwe
While speaking in an exclusive interview with The Sun newspaper, popular Nollywood actor, Enyinna Nwigwe, who in 2004, was discovered acting on the set of Jeta Amata’s movie, ‘Wheel of Change’, opened up on his career, recent projects, lifestyle and collaboration with Senegalese American music star, Akon.
Here are the excerpts;
Modeling helped you in the process of becoming an actor?
It led me to that in a sense; it is within the same entertainment space, within the same space of having to be on stage or walking the runway. You have to hold your own, but in this case, it felt like everyone behind the camera was monster, like they were going to bite my head off if I messed up, because the actors on set were already actors. I was thrown in to join them, and without lines, I had to make something look natural. There was no prior directing. I just did the most that I could in the moment of what felt natural to me.
When would you say critically, not commercially, you had your big break?
That question is very tricky because I approach this thing in a way; from the normal way it looks from the outside. I give every project I do my all; that’s the thing. The one project that I will always point to in different ways, because it did different things to my mindset, would be ‘Black November’. Majorly because it was an international project but also me being able to hold my own around an Oscar wining actor, Kim Basinger, Grammy award nominee, Akon and Grammy award winner, Wyclef with Vivica A. Fox – all the people we grew up watching in Nigeria – and just finding myself not like a Nigerian actor in the US, but a Nigerian actor from Nigeria, to go play a role and be lead actor where you take charge of scenes with these people and hold it down without anyone putting a pin to the bubble.
You make your work sound so interesting, so out of this world, but there must be bad days for you.
Of course, there are always bad days, but my kind of bad days come from a bit more of… I have a positive outlook to life, so I don’t let that slide. I bring myself into everything I do, so it helps me see life as life is, and not think ‘oh! This is not me, that is not me’. My bad days are days when I’m on a set and nobody understands the importance of keeping the vibe good. You have some producers you are trying to help and instead of them to understand that it’s teamwork, they feel like you are overstepping your bounds, no matter how diplomatic you approach the situation, or they may not have regard for the talent process.
Do you have any projects right now?
Yes, I finished shooting ‘Wedding Party 2’ not long ago, and currently in production for ‘American King’, which is an international project I am doing with Akon. It is going to be released alongside his next album. So, there is a lot of collaboration with the film and his next album, it’s a very interesting angle. It’s ‘Coming to America’ type of story but something that puts the black race in the state of mind that they feel the grandeur of our originality and culture and who we are. It is comedy laced with rich narratives and conversation about who we are.
Tell me more about ‘Wedding Party’ the sequel.
It was way out of this world. First, the conversation opens way beyond what it was before. What makes it even richer is the cultural dynamics; it’s a bit more expansive, it is beyond what part 1 was. We still have the richness of our African culture and we also have international culture infused. We have the conversation about cross-continent relationship; we also have the angle of the spectacle that is Dubai.
Were the old cast retained?
Yes, they were retained and they brought on new, even more explosive, electrifying cast. Now we have Chiwetalu Agu, Patience Ozokwor, Funny Bone and Chigurl.
Recently, you were named News of Africa’s Most Sexy Male Nollywood Star, what does this mean to you?
As much as we are in such a vain industry, it’s validation when you are named best one thing or the other by any standard. In general sense, it is validation; it means you are something in front of others, and amongst others. So, the more of those things you accumulate the better for you.
Being sexy comes with a curse, how do you deal with women in the industry?
I am not out there as it might look. Social media has done a lot for us. For one, it has helped us to be out there without being out there.
What are your views on marriage?
I think it is a beautiful thing but I think that beauty has to come with an organic process. I think that’s the part where in our clime we miss in putting pressure on people. So, people are getting married for the wrong reasons now. Yes, I understand time and pressure and everything, but I think it’s a foundational problem. If we are raised to be more individualistic in our mind and understanding of who we are from the onset, from childhood; finding ourselves, our strength, living in the comfort of who we are designed to be.
Have you ever fallen in love?
Of course, love is not enough. I will say that categorically. Just like talent is not enough in this business, love is also not enough. But love is instrumental and pivotal to the success of anything, because that makes the world spin around.
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