Veteran Nollywood actor Ejike Asiegbu has complained that many young actors today only care about becoming famous rather than learning to act well.
The 66-year-old movie star said this during a recent episode of the Nollywood on Radio podcast, where he talked about the new generation of actors in the industry.
According to Asiegbu, it saddened him to see the proud attitude of many young actors who behave as if they have already made it big.
“What makes it sad is that the younger ones have become emboldened by this cocky ‘I have arrived’ mentality,” he said.
He noted that only a few of them still show respect or look up to the older actors in the industry.
“Only a few are still reflective of the older ones, and not just humble. Many of them, when they see you, expect you to come and greet them because they feel they’ve already made it,” he added.
The filmmaker, who was the president of the Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN) from 2005 to 2009, also states that many young actors do not even prepare for their roles before filming begins.
“Most of them don’t read scripts until they get on set,” he said.
However, Asiegbu noted that one beautiful thing about acting is that the older you get in the industry, the better you become at it.
The veteran actor joined Nollywood in 1996 and became very famous after starring in the hit movie, Silent Night.
