Popular Nollywood actor, Desmond Elliot talks about his films, his lifestyle and more with Ademola Olonilua and Kemi Vaughan
Why did you bet on your new movie, The Place?
I was not joking when I said if fans did not enjoy my movie, I would
return their money. Someone tweeted at me and said he did not like it. I
said to him, ‘Okay, tell me which areas you don’t like and I will
refund your money’. So I’m waiting for his reply. Instead, he retweeted
what I said to him. I just feel we have got to where we should be able
to say, ‘this is good, you guys can watch it’. We just thought that the
movie, The Place, which is a comedy flick would lighten your mood. I
decided to make a comedy flick because comedy sells if it is good.
Trying to be funny is probably one of the worst things. You must
differentiate between humour and comedy. It is
one thing to be humorous and another thing to add a
comic feel to whatever it is you are doing. These are two separate
things. Comedy sells.
I can’t do sex movie. I feel that for the kind of society we are in,
understanding will be difficult. Again, because of my faith, I will have
to be very careful. I can imply, but I can’t do the graphic things or
either shoot them as a director; but I can imply. I can do kiss scenes
or romance scenes but I probably will not do the actual thing.
Why do you frequently change your looks?
First, what I always tell people is that life is short, so let us try a
bit of everything. Again, I do it for roles that I play, just to have
something different. Sometimes I try to do it for a character.
What influences your fashion style?
Honestly, I don’t know, but when I am stepping out, I try to look okay. Not the best but okay.
How have you been able to stay scandal-free?
I come on set and try not to make anything look too difficult. I respect
my wife and family a lot. I’m very playful. I just think I’m motivating
too many people, family, church, so many things. It is not by power.
Many people who ‘mess up’ don’t do it because they want to, but because
it just unfortunately happened. And you just hope it doesn’t happen to
you someday. I always say I’m not a saint. I can say the wrong things
and do the wrong things but I try to make sure that my priorities are
right and the stakeholders are not disappointed. They are my church, my
faith, my family, my wife.
How religious are you?
I’m just someone who believes so much in God, I believe in Jesus so
much. If you want to call it born again, call it. Everyone is born
again. I’m just one who believes strongly in the Christian faith.
Is there a clear cut difference between Desmond on set and Desmond the family man?
I should think so. As a family man, I play the role of the daddy,
husband, man who has to take responsibility. On set, it is work, like
you are going to the office. You have staff, people who take orders from
you and those you take orders from. It is distinctively different.
How I met my wife?
She is pretty much my best friend. She was schooling in the University
of Jos, in the early 90s. She was studying mathematics and we were in
the same church. We were in the same drama group and choir as well. I
have always known her, not for anything but as Sister Victoria.
What attracted you to Sister Victoria?
You would not believe it, but it was because she was totally different
from me. I’m an extrovert, the very outgoing, talkative kind of person,
while she was very calm and different. She was very ‘I must enquire from
the Holy Spirit before I do anything’.That gave me a kind of spooky
feeling; and maybe that was the attraction. I was totally different from
her and she gave me a hard time. When I asked her out, she did not
think I was the one. I want to believe I wasn’t spiritual enough for
her. But eventually, we dated for eight years and have been married for
10 years.
How long did it take you to get her to your side?
It took a while. I remember one time after vigil in school, we were
going home. She used to live close to where I stayed. On that day, she
said, about that thing you said, I don’t think it will work. It was
heart-breaking then. I was pretty young. It is fun looking back at it.
Do you tease her for being like that to you?
We haven’t done that in a while. I tease more about the animals I gave
during the wedding – the goats and cows. I did something really funny
that day, I sewed a dress for the goats and dressed the animals in them.
So the goats had something to wear, like a monkey jacket with buttons.
We tease about that a lot.
What is the craziest thing a fan has done to you?
Kiss me. That to me was crazy. She came to me, asked me to smile, I did
and she saw my broken tooth. She then said, ‘he is the one’ and kissed
me. I pulled her off. That was a while ago.
If you were not an actor, what would you have been?
I’d probably be in the bank. I love counting money. I love money too much.
What do you dread the most?
I dread a lot of things but among the top ones, I dread disappointing
people. I dread being a failure. I can’t fail. You might stumble many
times but always rise again. I always take a cue from the guy who
discovered the electric bulb. He tried a thousand times over and failed
but when he tried again, he got it right. I really hate to fail.
Circumstances around me sometimes look vague and difficult but I take it
up as challenges. I really hate failing.
Which of your kids would you say reminds you of yourself while growing?
Denzel. He has my fingers, these ugly fingers. He has my lips, he is
very unsettled. Of the twins, he came out first. He is the older one.
People tell me he is just like me. He is the impatient one. He is that
character.
What were you like growing up?
I was quite calm. I have a very strict mum. She is a mum that if you
were that stubborn, she would take you to the police station, up North
in Jos. My mother did not care who you are. She was very tough. There
are five of us by my mother and I was the first child while my father
has 11 children. I’m the sixth for my dad and the first from my mother. I
was calm because of the training. You could not hear my mum’s voice and
not shut up. Things have changed these days. Now you would be talking
and a four-year-old would talk back; you couldn’t do that in those days,
not with my mother. She has a lot of influence even in the way I
‘train’ my kids, which is different from the way my wife does. My wife
is more of the talking to the kids type, I’m more of the ‘I would spank
you’ type. A bit hard, the stick and carrot kind of training, but she is
more of ‘don’t touch the child’. I’m not that patient.
Comparing how your mother trained you and how she is training your kids, would you say she is calmer now?
She is calm but some days back, they went to visit and my mum had this
long cane right in the living room. I asked her what it was for, and she
said, ‘this is it, let me see them misbehave’. It is still the same
thing but she is way calmer. There is no much stress like before. I have
an awesome relationship with my mother.
What’s the last fashion gift your wife got you?
She got me some lovely African fabrics for Fathers’ Day and I’m taking
it to Yomi Casual. She also has a good eye for watches and bracelets.
Good watches.
