Controversial Nollywood actor, Jim Iyke has opened up on why he was once banned for a period of two-years for standing up for poorly paid Nigerian actors.
The thespian who was speaking at the ongoing International Youth Empowerment Summit in Accra, Ghana, that at the time producers were becoming multi-millionaires and the actors, were slightly lower than him, were struggling.
According to him, to change the structure, they (actors) had to call movie producers to the negotiating table because the thespians who have the gift and talent should not live in penury.
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He said; “Apparently, our producers were becoming multi-millionaires and the actors, not me, I mean guys that were slightly lower, were struggling. And so, I called the group and said, we need to change the structure, without us they don’t exist. We are the ones the fans know. We have the gift and the talent why should they be earning more than us?”
“On the negotiating table everybody had something to say. I made you, without me you wouldn’t have been that. I gave you, your first chance. My colleagues kept quiet because everybody had a leaning, had somebody to point at to say without you I wouldn’t have been whatever it is that I became.
“So, I said one thing, can somebody stand up and truthfully claim that without them I wouldn’t have come up. Not one person. Because I knew how I started. I knew the belief that I had… I refused to do small roles. For the first 2 to 3 years of my career, they kept giving me small roles and I refused them. I said if it is not a major lead then I’m not doing it,” Jim Iyke added.
