This year, so far, has been full of surprises for us Nollywood lovers- from epic box office breaks, pleasing cinematic experiences to epic comebacks of screen OGs who were MIA for a while.
But our focus isn’t about them, but it is about the new faces who surprised us with their Nollywood debut.
Some of the ones on my list were already household names before they ventured into Nollywood while some were not but in any case, they left indelible prints with their exemplary performance.
- Chike Osebuka
From serenading and crooning love songs to becoming a thug of circumstance in Isale Eko , Chike Osebuka simply known as Chike, definitely tops my list of 2023’s delightfully surprising Nollywood debuts.
Chike played Ify in Jade Osiberu’s Gang of Lagos and to say he bodied it would be an understatement of the year!
2. Zlatan
Second on my list is Zlatan, another musician who switched it up for a minute to dazzle us with the gangsta character, Kash, in Jade Osiberu’s Gangs of Lagos. Word from the grapevine is that to master his role in the film, he had to take a break from music for months. It obviously paid off.
3. Don Jazzy
Na who do the beat? Jazzy! Bet that sounds familiar. But if not, may civilization find you this instant and the rain of Wi-Fi wash you ashore from the dark depths of the stone ages. Amen.
For the rest of us who do know Don Jazzy, his Nollywood debut was in Biodun Stephen’s sequel to Introducing The Kujus where he excellently played Mausi’s short term “beau”.
4. Adedamola Adewale aka Adeherself
Another stellar debut was from Adeherself, a comedienne who was first known for her knack for switching accents in skits until she appeared in Biodun Stephen’s Sistá where she delivered the young Vicky character so well that it flowed effortlessly with Kehinde Bankole’s character as the older Vicky.
5. Black Kamaru
Kurunmi Ijaya popularly known as Black Kamaru came to the limelight through a skit in which he played a translator- and since then, he has been a comic staple.
His debut like Chike and Zlatan’s was also in Gangs of Lagos and true to form, besides his stellar performance, he left us with the now popular saying acrozzz the river.
6. Gabriel Omozele Gabby
Comedienne Gabriel Omozele, aka Gabby is social media content creator and her first Nollywood appearance was in Tope Oshin’s Here Love Lies on Netflix to play Young Amanda who gets pregnant outside wedlock and was abandoned by her family.
Which other debut performances have you seen so far that surprised you?
