Veteran Nollywood actress Omotola Jalade Ekeinde has spoken out about the circumstances surrounding the alleged ban that affected her and several prominent actors in the industry years ago.
According to the screen icon, she and colleagues, including Genevieve Nnaji, Ramsey Nouah, Jim Iyke, Stella Damasus, Richard Mofe-Damijo, and Nkem Owoh, were sidelined by marketers after advocating for higher standards and better structure within Nollywood.
Omotola made the revelation during a recent interview while promoting her new film, Mother’s Love. She explained that their push for professionalism at the time was met with resistance from key stakeholders in the industry.
“They said we were too troublesome because we were trying to better the industry. They said we were bad influences because we were pushing for standards,” she said.
The actress further disclosed that although efforts were later made to resolve the dispute through a reconciliation meeting, she deliberately chose not to participate.
“They called for a reconciliation meeting, and I refused to go,” she said.
Addressing speculations about her relationship with Genevieve, Omotola clarified that while there is no animosity between them, they are not particularly close.
“People don’t need to be best friends, but we talk,” she said.
