Nigerian actor, Emeka Okoye, has opened up about facing discrimination in the movie industry due to his body size.
In an interview with Seun Oloketuyi on Nollywood On Radio, Okoye revealed that he has repeatedly lost acting opportunities because producers often consider him either “too slim” or “too fat” for certain roles.
“I’ve been told that I am fat, and I have lost movie roles because of that. Some say I won’t fit a character because I have a stomach or I’m not fine,” the actor shared.
Okoye explained that the bias against him started early in his career.
“When I was younger and slimmer, I still didn’t get roles. Producers would use me for auditions but never cast me because they said I was too slim,” he said, adding that actress Bukky Thomas could attest to his experience.
Emeka Okoye further noted that his current body type now limits him to specific roles.
“Now that I’m a bit chubby, they give me roles like landlord, husband, or uncle.”
Some even stopped giving me ‘bad boy’ roles because they think I can’t interpret them but they’ll be surprised when they see my upcoming movies,” Okoye said.
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