By Damilola Fatunmise
Actor, model, screenwriter and entrepreneur, Abayomi Alvin rose to prominence after featuring in Jenifa’s Diary and Isoken.
Ever since, he has carved a place for himself in the industry not just as a thespian, but also as a reputable content creator.
The graduate of Sociology and Anthropology from Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) in this interview spoke about his journey into Nollywood and why he’ll never date an actress again. Here are excerpts:
How did acting start for you?
I started as a model even though, I’ve always admired acting from primary/secondary school. I never saw myself as an actor maybe because I grew up in Akure. I came to Lagos to spend holidays with my extended family and that was when my physique started portraying that of an adolescent, and I started getting advice to be a model. I went to a couple of modeling competitions, which I won such as Mr. Ideal Osun State and Mr. Ideal Nigeria. From there, I started noticing that models are not appreciated. So, I started going for movie auditions. I remember getting my first role alongside Uche Maduagwu in 2013/14.
You weren’t based in Lagos then?
I used to come to Lagos every week from school (Obafemi Awolowo University, Ife). I used to think that, as Mr. Ideal, I could face the crowd. I did one scene in a movie but I couldn’t deliver. I had so many takes and I was sweating like a Christmas goat; the director was so angry with me. I wasn’t paid, but if they had paid me, I would have rejected the money because I knew what I did. I went home thinking about my life, how I risked my life traveling every week to Lagos. However, the never dying spirit in me made me continue acting.
I’ve read stories of top actors, they never started as top actors. I am one of those actors that learnt on the job. I went to a whole lot of auditions and I wasn’t picked. I went for Jenifa’s Diary audition, waited for three days while squatting with friends, before I was eventually called. I was so excited and I told everyone about it I thought it was a major role but on getting there, it was a waka pass role. I don’t know what she (Funke Akindele) saw in me, but she called me for another movie, and guess what, it was still waka pass (laughs).
You are also a script writer; at what point did you become one?
At some point when roles weren’t coming, I learnt about script writing and wrote a couple of scripts. We were on set one day and Funke Akindele came, she saw me and we exchanged pleasantries. The director on set then told her that I now write scripts. There and then, she gave me her number and said there’s a script conference for Jenifa’s Diary, and that was how I became a writer on Jenifa’s Diary. From there, I had my first cinema movie, Isoken, my first series with Africa Magic, Jemeji and from there, it’s been a very good ride.
These days, you do more of skits, what prompted you to switch to online skits?
I won’t say I switched. If you check my social media pages as far as 2015/16, you will see contents that I’ve been creating. But I never really took it serious then, it was more like fun. Way back, I’ve shot with big names in the content creation industry like Broda Shaggi, Officer Woss, and Mr. Macaroni. So, I will say I took it more seriously these past couple of months or years, which now made it look as if I switched from Nollywood to online content creation. I had three of my movies in cinemas earlier this year and more are coming later this year. I’m still very much in Nollywood. The reason you have been seeing my face online is because I took content creation really serious, just as I take acting serious. The world is changing and as an entertainer, you have to find a way to be relevant.
Do you see yourself dumping professional acting for skit making?
No, it’s always funny when people say ‘professional acting’. What do they do in skit? It’s also acting and they get paid too. People invite me to shoot contents and they pay me too. But no, I’m not leaving acting for online content creation.
Which pays more?
It’s a personal thing. I’ll say content creation pays more and here is my reason: as an actor, you can’t control how much you make in a month. You can say ‘this month I want to make N20 million’, but what if the job that would pay you that amount doesn’t come? But as a content creator, who is hard working, you can control how much you make. If your social media pages are monetized, then you know how much is coming in a month. Based on that, I will say content creation pays more in Nigeria.
You appear to me as jovial, what’s your life outside acting like?
I’m actually a very simple guy. I like to take life step by step. If I have 100 problems, I’ll solve them one at a time. I watch a lot of movies and most times, I prefer being indoors and it’s safer; you avoid problems when you are indoors. I won’t say I’m an introvert but indoors is just cool. Outdoor is wahala especially in Lagos – talk of traffic, billing, lots of billing.
Can you date an actress?
I did it once and it didn’t end well, so I don’t know if I can do that again. I don’t even know why it didn’t end well. I wish I left us as friends, maybe we would have been the best of friends right now. It’s one of the regrets I have. In fact, we ended up blocking each other.
Celebrities are seen as role models especially those who tell their grass to grace stories…
First of all, I do tell people not to see me as their role model. Just pick few things because nobody is perfect so that you don’t see me on the news one day and be like ‘oh, my role model’. You may see one or two things to admire like my acting, style, and dress sense but don’t put me on this pedestal that makes me almost robotic. I am a human being and I’m meant to make mistakes and when I do, I want people to also treat me as a human being, because even those seeing me as role model do make mistakes also. So, who am I not to make mistakes.
The post Why I’ll never date an actress again – Abayomi Alvin, actor appeared first on The Sun Nigeria.