How Skin Tone Determined Nollywood Roles — Omowunmi Dada

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Actress Omowunmi Dada has opened up about how colourism influenced casting choices in Nollywood during the early years of her career, describing how skin tone often determined who got roles regardless of talent.

Speaking on the CreativiTea podcast, the actress reflected on the challenges she encountered while trying to break into the industry, revealing that physical appearance frequently outweighed acting ability in casting rooms.

She explained that filmmakers often built characters with a specific look in mind before auditions even began, which meant many talented actors were turned away simply because they didn't match a preconceived image.

"You have the story in mind and you create characters. The characters are the vehicles that drive the story to destination. And while you're creating these characters, you have different ideas of who you want these characters to be," she said.

Dada noted that this practice made it nearly impossible for certain actors to land roles, even when they were capable of delivering strong performances.

"When I was starting out, I mean, I got a lot of noes. One thing is, it wasn't based off of a deficit of talent. It was just that I probably did not fit into the character," she recalled.

According to the actress, darker-skinned performers faced particular disadvantages, which she said fueled a widespread trend of skin bleaching among actors desperate to fit industry standards at the time.

"If you were dark-skinned, oyo for you. That's why people were bleaching a lot that time now. You had to be yellow," she said, adding that she personally didn't fit the "yellow" standard many productions demanded.

The actress also shared a troubling account involving a colleague who was told by a lighting designer that her dark skin would require excessive lighting equipment, an experience Dada said reflected the industry's broader bias at the time.

Despite acknowledging these systemic issues, Dada maintained that adaptability remains key for actors navigating such limitations, noting that physical traits are simply beyond one's control.

Born into the theatre scene while studying Creative Arts at the University of Lagos, Dada transitioned into television and film, steadily building a career across multiple platforms.

 She made her cinematic debut in the 2013 movie "Oya" and has since appeared in numerous acclaimed productions including "Ojuju," "The Antique," "Omugwo," "Òlòtūré," "Elesin Oba: The King's Horseman," and "Funmilayo Ransome Kuti," among others.

Her contributions to Nigerian cinema have not gone unnoticed, as she clinched the AMVCA Trailblazer Award in 2018, cementing her status as one of the industry's respected talents.

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