Nwosu Michael, a Nollywood actor known for playing gangster roles in movies, has described his hitting the limelight as “Divine”, revealing how God “arrested” him and changed his life for good.
Speaking to LEADERSHIP Sunday, he recalls how his debut movie, “Return of Shina Rambo,” directed by Ilochi Olisemeka, exposed him to playing tough roles in movies, leading to his being stereotyped by film producers and directors.
Micheal has starred alongside Zubby Micheal in tough movies such a “German Machine”, “Who Killed Abobi”, “Convenient of Money”, “Secret of Zubby”, “ Flashback” , The Assassin” and his latest movie, “The Clash.”
The actor confirmed that it was “German Machine” and “Convenient of Money” that brought him to the limelight. He also narrated how he changed his name to Yankaba to “I am Yankaba the arch angel a.k.a Demon possessed.
“Acting bad boy in movies doesn’t mean I am bad. God arrested me because I was once bad ,” said the actor.
Following the tough roles he plays in movies, Michael became close with Zubby Michael, who advised him to focus on his career and avoid non-beneficial people.
He recalls: “We were at a location and I was standing by my car, when Zubby Micheal walked past me. I was talking to someone on the phone and I spoke in coded language, I never knew he overheard me.While he was coming back, he came straight to my passenger seat and opened the car.
“I was surprised and I greeted him. He said to me that he likes my acting and those people I was talking to on the phone, I should avoid them as they can’t do me any good . That I am a star, I should focus on my career.
“I was shocked but it touched me. I even thought he was a bad boy due to his roles in movies. Zubby really carried me along and made me flow while acting that day
Thank God for today because I was once a bad boy and thanks to Zubby for advising me .We became friends and even exchanged numbers. People thought he’s my brother because our surnames are the same,” he narrated.
Reflecting on his journey, Michael said he was destined to be a superstar, even though he never imagined that he would go into acting. “All my mind was after graduating from the university, I would pick up a white-collar job and live a normal life,” he said.
Michael, stressed financial independence for budding actors before venturing into the industry. This he reasoned, will enable them to weather storms when the chips are down.
