Veteran Nollywood actor Kanayo O. Kanayo has disclosed that he was featured in Nollywood before his colleague, Pete Edochie.
An eminent member of the Nigerian film industry by the name of Kanayo O Kanayo recently stirred up controversy on social media by adamantly asserting his seniority over admired colleague Pete Edochie.
In a recent interview with Afia TV, Kanayo O Kanayo made the emphatic claim that people of his caliber, such as Pete Edochie and others, must not be left out of the history of Nollywood.
Investigating the records, the 61-year-old actor was adamant that Kenneth Nnebue’s groundbreaking works of the 1990s cannot be disproved. He highlighted Nnebue’s crucial contribution as the pioneering director of professionally produced home videos in 1992.
Expanding on his point, Kanayo said that he and other actors who appeared in the 1992–1993 Nigerian drama–thriller film “Living in Bondage” were among the first to enter Nollywood as true professionals.
The renowned 1971 Nigerian film “Things Fall Apart,” which starred the esteemed Pete Edochie, was a cinematic project, according to Kanayo, and not a home video production.
The renowned actor declared that he is ready to refute any claims that Pete Edochie founded Nollywood before him, including those made by his colleagues.
Pete may have started his career in film before him, but Edochie joined Nollywood formally four years after he did, according to Kanayo, emphasizing that this distinction is not based on biological age.
He insisted that he has an advantage over Pete Edochie in the world of Nollywood.
Watch the video below.