Pete Edochie, other English movie actors came after Yoruba films, Lere Paimo dismisses seniority claims

Veteran Yoruba actor Lere Paimo has refuted claims made by English film actor Pete Edochie, stating that Yoruba actors and movies were present in Nigeria long before Edochie and other English-speaking actors entered the scene. Paimo made these remarks during a YouTube interview with Kunle Afod, responding to a debate on who initiated Nollywood, a Nigerian film industry.

Paimo, who is 86 years old, declared that he began his acting career in 1958, four years before Edochie claimed his career started in 1962 at the age of 15. The discussion about seniority arose after Edochie challenged his colleagues to prove if anyone had begun acting before him, pointing to his role in William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice in 1962.

Paimo disagreed with Edochie, tracing the origins of Nollywood to the Yoruba travelling theatre tradition. He stated that he met Hubert Ogunde, who was senior to him and others, and that there were significant movies produced during that time. Paimo cited historical records, which indicate that when Ogunde started in the 1940s, no one else was before him, and there was no mention of English-language movie production before him.

He emphasized that indigenous Yoruba productions came first, predating the emergence of English films, which became popular later. Paimo argued that Ogunde started producing movies in the Yoruba language to educate everyone who watched them. He also addressed claims about other early theatre figures, asserting that he did not know if Baba Olumegbon started before Ogunde, but he was certain that Ogunde was the first actor he knew who began acting.