Ramsey Nouah is one of the most enduring faces in Nollywood. Though, his appearance in movies has reduced over the years, he is still priced high in the industry.
In an encounter with our correspondent the lover boy, as he was fondly at a time, said that lack of structure in Nollywood made it hard for actors to have a standard fee for movies.
He said, “With the way things are in the industry, there is no particular amount an actor charges because there is no structure. I could tell you I collect between N10 to N20 million, but I could as well do a movie for one million or N500, 000”.
According to him, the amount he charges for a movie depends on many factors, including humanitarian cause.
He added, “But I cannot go beyond a certain amount for commercial movies. If you are talking about movies generally, it ranges from N500, 000 to N20 million.
“Everything depends on me and what I really want to do. If my heart tells me I should do it, I do not hesitate. But I do not like when my family or friends are involved in my business”. Nouah had his first acting job in 1990 in the soap opera, ‘Fortunes’. According to him, the Nigerian Television Authority, the producers of the series, paid him N80 per episode.
“NTA paid me for just three months; I forfeited the remaining nine months. I used the money to buy a trouser and belt in Ojuelegba, Lagos. It was a huge upgrade for me then”.
As a Nollywood actor, one experience Nouah relishes is the reception he gets whenever he visits other African countries. According to him, people always expect so much from him while he is on such trips.
He, however, said it was understandable because “when you see a Hollywood actor, he or she moves around with bodyguards. That is how they expect us to come too, being the second largest filmmaker in the world. But since we don’t have structure to facilitate the glamour, things cannot be like that. By the time you live a flamboyant life, you will be back to zero”.
Nouah said that today, many actors were under pressure because of the sort of lifestyle people expect them to live. According to him, in the past, acting was all about the performance, depth and ability of an actor to bring out the best of the character in a movie. But today, he stressed that there was so much emphasis on glamour. “You are a role model and people want you to look gorgeous at all times.
You are addressed by the way you dress too. If you come to me and look shabby as an actor, I will not appreciate you. But movies are not all about showcasing your beauty; you must have the passion to be successful”, he said.
