Akah Nnani: On Becoming ‘Man of God’ and Living His Purpose

Stepping into his first lead role in the new Bolanle Austen-Peters film ‘Man of God’ on Netflix, TV and Nollywood actor Akah Nnani talks about his character and the essence of his personality in an encounter with Vanessa Obioha

His first reading was a disaster. His acting was barely convincing, but somehow, director Bolanle Austen-Peters was persuaded Akah Nnani was the right man for her new feature film ‘Man of God’, now showing on Netflix.
She was right. Nnani, who stepped into his first lead role in the film, depicted his character Samuel Obalolu with dexterity and vulnerability.
The first time he filled the screen was to portray the Afrobeat legend Fela Anikulapo-Kuti. It was an arduous task, the actor admitted.
“That was the hardest part for me because I’m not a Fela’s fan. I like him and his ideology, but I have never been a fan of his music. He is not my era. I love what he stood for, but I am not a fan. I didn’t know his mannerisms like that. He died when I was a kid, and I had just 24 hours to prepare and get into Fela. I had gotten Samuel, but there was a part of his life where he was impersonating Fela in school. So I had 24 hours. I didn’t even know the songs we were going to perform. I didn’t know anything,” Nnani explains.
“And I go on set the first day. BAP (Austen-Peters) says, ‘Oh, we are doing Fela.’ I was shocked. I think she just wanted to know if I was going to mess up. That was hard. That was crazy. Went on to do Fela for four days. But that first day on set was the hardest part of the script. So that was tough. And I had a couple of hours to just embody that huge person called Fela. I don’t even think I did a great job. But she was impressed.”
‘Man of God’ is centred on Samuel’s struggle to overcome his harsh Christian background or pursue his dreams. He fancies himself a musician but the women surrounding him have a version of who they want him to be. While Rekya (Dorcas Shola Fapson) is his partner-in-crime, Teju (Osas Ighodaro), a childhood friend, sees him as the perfect man for her. However, Samuel’s dream girl Joy (Atlanta Bridget Johnson), has doubts about their relationship.
Inside, Samuel is conflicted. Having been raised harshly by his preacher father, who expects him to walk in his shoes, his rebellious nature pushes him away from his family.
Throughout the nearly two-hour film, Nnani navigated the intricacies of his character meticulously. He had to read the script twice, prayed and gradually began to understand his character. By the time he met Austen-Peters again for another reading, the remarks were spectacular. Two weeks later, Nnani had embodied Samuel. He learnt not to judge his character but found some similarities between them to enable his interpretation.
“One thing I learned early in my career was never to judge my character. Because I knew that no one, in reality, is completely evil. No one is completely good. So I found the similarities between myself and Samuel. And I think that everybody, every young person or old person, has gone through some period in their life where they were rebellious or asking questions, and I held on to that and amplified that phase in my life,” says the actor.
“So it’s the same thing with Samuel. He had a harsh upbringing, he decided, you know what, I’m going to take laws into my own hands, I will live my life the way I want to, and the only difference is someone didn’t come back to his senses in time.”
One of the things that intrigued him about Samuel was his ability to achieve things he set his mind to.
“He is a doer, which a lot of people aren’t,” says Nnani. “A lot of people are planners, thinkers, and laze around a lot, especially in our country. People talk a lot. Not many people are doers. So I like that about him. Whether it’s bad or good, when he wants to do something, he does it. I like that he’s determined. He’s into music and knows his stuff. He knew how to get a crowd going. He had charisma. And he was a fine boy like me.”
Nnani has a humorous side to his character, whether explaining a point or sharing a memory. His facial expressions were mostly animated and, within seconds, had everyone in stitches.
Usually, people tend to assume characters in front of a camera, but it is the reverse for Nnani. What you see on screen (that is, when he is not acting) is probably what you see behind the scenes: easygoing, jovial, purpose-driven and determined.
Within seven years in the entertainment industry, he has accumulated several titles. He is an actor, YouTuber, content creator, producer, and TV host. As a child, Nnani, who hails from Imo envisioned himself being the next Oprah Winfrey. He was so enamoured by her charisma and ability to draw conversations with people — traits he said he shared too — that he thought himself the Nigerian version of Oprah. But when he saw her acting, he was mesmerised. Again, he found himself thinking of taking a similar path.
“I just wanted to be on TV and do what Oprah was doing. Do something good for the people, and not basically for fame. But it was just the way she was able to touch people’s lives, how she gave out the best gifts, and I’ve tried to do that on my YouTube channel,” he notes.
Even though he knew his talents were in the arts, like any young man embracing adulthood, Nnani was bent on making money. He dreamt of working in the oil industry but ended up in telecoms. Still, his acting star illuminated brightly that his colleagues often told him he was in the wrong field.
“I think the eye-opening moment for me was when my manager told me I was bigger than this place. She said it in passing, but she didn’t know that her words sank deep into my heart,” recalls Nnani. “My classmates in school often wondered why I was in the telecoms industry because they knew my talents. I think the reason is that I didn’t believe in myself. I had standards and compared myself to Oprah and Denzel Washington.”
Like Oprah, Washington holds a special place in Nnani’s heart. The American actor is his role model. He sees himself becoming nothing less than Washington because of the actor’s effortless way of interpreting characters. To keep up that status, Nnani revealed that he is selective in the films he accepts, mainly because he doesn’t want to be stereotyped. He likes scripts that challenge and give him range.
After leaving the telecoms industry, Nnani travelled to Dubai, looking for inspiration and came back broke. However, he landed his first gig on a TV station as a presenter. Interestingly, he did not scale through the audition because one of the applicants stole the spotlight, so by the time it was his turn for the interview, all the confidence he mustered had vanished. Yet, Providence had a plan for him. He was called later to replace the applicant.  
Other opportunities followed, leading to his latest ‘Man Of God’.
Stepping into his first lead role, Nnani said he found the opportunity taxing because of the weight of expectations.
“BAP has a very strong and overpowering personality, especially when it comes to work. If she gives you a chance and you don’t get it, boom,” says the actor, snapping his fingers, “you are out.”
He adds, “If she is not convinced after three weeks of shooting, she will change the character. She will forget the money and she would just go with someone else and start again. She doesn’t mind. So that was always at the back of my mind.”
The day we met was the eve of the film’s premiere on Netflix, and the butterflies in his stomach were already settling down as he awaited the audience’s reaction. The feedback he got from the trailer was uplifting. But he need not worry as the film, since its premiere, has retained the number one spot on the Netflix Top 10 in Nigeria. His major takeaways from the film he said were that people should be allowed to be who they really are.
“Especially for parents. The children have their lives, and they are not an extension of you even though biologically they are, but they wouldn’t make your mistakes if you give them the right tools and the right environment. Your calling is not your child’s calling,” Nnani points out.
Now a father, family comes first for the Mass Comm graduate. When his daughter was born last year, he took a three-month break from work. For him, who he is is anchored on his spiritual core and the things that matter to him most.
“I am a son of God. And I am a father and a husband. When I was younger, one of the things that when people ask me what do I want to become and I say lawyer, and then what else, and I tell them, I want to be the best father,” intones Nnani. “That gives me more fulfilment than even being the best actor. That’s who I am basically. Those are the two things that give me meaning; my relationship with God, and how good I am to my family.”