His name might not ring a bell among Nigeria’s new-age film lovers, but Roy De-Nani has been around since before the inception of Nollywood.
Although he started as a stage actor, his early entry into film was in the adaptation of Chinua Achebe’s ‘Things Fall Apart’ alongside his childhood friend, Pete Edochie.
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He also shared the spotlight with other veterans, including the late Sam Loco Efe, Nkem Owoh, and Chiwetalu Agu.
However, despite his colourful career as an actor and a film producer, De-Nani has bitter memories of his time as an actor.
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Tragic loss
In a recent interview on the ‘Where Is The Lie’ podcast, the veteran shared a heartbreaking experience at the hands of Nollywood film producers, which he said led to the death of two of his children.
According to the actor, who was once a goalkeeper for Rangers International football club, what started as an 11-month ban spanned for 13 years, during which he struggled financially.
“As a Christian, I have forgiven them. I said, Father, forgive them, for they knew not what they did.
“In that time, I lost my son. I lost my daughter. Because we needed a blood transfusion, they had the SS genotype. We needed a blood transfusion, but there was no money to buy one. And they died,” he said.
Backstory
Narrating the events that led to his ban, the actor said they date back to when another veteran, Ndubisi Oku, was still alive.
According to him, the late Ndubisi told him that while in Lagos, there was a misunderstanding between the Igbo and the Yoruba actors.
Following the squabble, the Igbo actors decided to leave Lagos for Benin to ply their craft. From there, they relocated to Asaba before finally settling in Enugu.
According to him, he advised the actors to opt for a peaceful resolution to the issues.
“When you enter a movie, you make friends. We are friends. We are brothers. We should have been one and settled this once and for all,” he said.
He was then asked to pray against the then president of the Actors Guild of Nigeria and the “producers president”. After his initial refusal, he went ahead to pray, but with a different intention.
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“I went to the back. I said, Heavenly Father, you are the creator of all things, visible and invisible. Please touch these warring leaders so that they will be one. There will be love. There will be understanding.
“A boy went to Ejike Asiegbu and told him that they asked Roy De-Nani to pray against you. And he prayed against you. And he went to the producer, the producer’s president. He told him that they asked Roy Denani to pray against you. And he prayed against you,” he said.
It was at that point that the Producer’s association decided to place a ban on him.
“That was how it started from 11 months to 13 years. Even the one I was recording, the producer came, ran in and said, no, cancel it,” he said.
Roy De-Nani
To his credit, the veteran actor and ex-Biafran Army soldier has starred in quite a number of films.
His most recognised films include ‘Atinga’, ‘Midnight Love’, ‘The Last Burial’, ‘Onye-Eze’, ‘The Catechist’, ‘Axe of Vengeance’ and many others.
In a brief stint in the sporting world, he was the goalkeeper of Rangers International Football Club.
According to him, he was about to pivot into boxing before acting came calling.
