Nollywood actress and filmmaker Omoni Oboli has shared how she lost a movie role after refusing to kiss a film director during an audition.
The Scoper Media reports that Oboli recounted the incident on comedian AY’s Glasshouse Show, explaining that it occurred after she returned to Nigeria following a break to raise her children abroad.
She said, “A director asked me to kiss him at an audition, and I couldn’t understand why. I asked, ‘Is this part of the audition?’ and he said, ‘Yeah, I just want to see.’ I replied, ‘Sorry, I can’t do it. There’s no reason to be kissing the director when we’re not even on set.’
“I refused, and as a result, I didn’t get the role that I had traveled for. I ended up going back home without playing the part.”
Omoni Oboli Defends Idris Elba Casting in Things Fall Apart
Meanwhile, Omoni Oboli has voiced her support for Idris Elba playing the lead role in the upcoming film adaptation of Chinua Achebe’s classic novel Things Fall Apart.
The novel, which explores pre-colonial life in Igboland and the arrival of European missionaries, was first adapted into a movie in 1971 and a mini-series in 1987, with Nigerian actor Pete Edochie portraying the protagonist, Okonkwo.
A new series is now in development at A24, with Idris Elba and Gina Carter as executive producers under their 22Summers banner. While the casting has drawn some criticism, Oboli told Channels TV on Saturday that there is nothing wrong with Elba taking the lead role, emphasizing that he is African.
She also noted that Africans are best suited to tell their own stories.
