Nollywood actor Tony Umez says he is back in business following a period of hiatus.
Nollywood actor Tony Umez.
He spoke exclusively to Vanguard saying the younger actors have taken control of the movie industry but he is back to do his thing. He also touched on his alleged absence from the scene.
“But that doesn’t mean, I haven’t done some jobs in recent times. It’s just that I haven’t been as prolific as I used to be in the past. I have been involved in other projects. Nonetheless, I am back in the industry,” he said.
Umez explained that for a seasoned actor who previously had around 13 to 14 movie appearances yearly it would come as surprise were he to stop doing that much movies, hence the question on whether or not he is still active in the industry.
The actor who hit limelight following his appearance in the movie Died Wretched said that wasn’t his first movie role even though it brought him fame.
The Anambra native also explained why he hasn’t appeared in any purely Igbo movie saying he doesn’t speak nor understand the language.
“It’s a long story which I wouldn’t want to talk about now. It’s sad but there is nothing I can do about it. In fact, the little I understand is as a result of my wife. My wife is from Okija.
“I am from Ogidi in Anambra State. I speak English and Efik fluently because my mum comes from Cross River State. I grew up in Lagos and as a result, I speak Yoruba too. I have done some Yoruba movies. I have also done an Efik movie. It is not as if I never had Igbo friends while growing up. But I thank God for His mercies. I have never for once run away from my roots,” he said.
Responding to his role in a supposed ‘soft porn’ movie, 027, he said: “It is something I wouldn’t want to discuss now because there has been a lot of brouhaha about the film. So many misconceptions. I did a movie, and I didn’t see it as soft-porn. Those who are labelling the film as ‘x-rated movie’ have not watched, till the end. They only watched the trailer and concluded that it is soft porn. I read the script, which was written by one of the very best in the industry Dami Joe Efe Young. It was a wonderful script.
“It was a 2-hour movie, but people are focusing on that particular scene which just happened. And it wasn’t as if there was sex on set. Everything was basically make-believe. It was made to look real and people believed it too. I don’t blame them because they have their own opinions while I have mine.
“It wasn’t as if there was sex all through the movie. It was just an aspect of the whole movie,” he said.
He said the criticisms in the wake of the movie affected his wife given the negative press it generated.
However, the actor said his family has moved on ever since.
“I have weathered the storm, and I have moved on as an individual, and my family has moved on too. May be, what it had taught me is to be more circumspect in the things I do,” he said.
Tony Umez is a Nollywood actor who shot to prominence in the 1994 movie Died Wretched: Buried In N2.3m Casket.
He is a graduate of the University of Lagos and holds a masters degree in International Relations and Diplomacy.
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