Nkem Owoh, widely recognized as Osuofia, has firmly rejected assertions that Yoruba people were the first to start Nollywood, insisting instead that his comments referred to the origins of home video in Nigeria rather than the creation of the Nollywood industry.
The veteran actor explained that the name 'Nollywood' was not in use when he and other filmmakers began making films, adding that it came into being only after discussions among industry participants.
"I never said Yoruba started Nollywood. When did Nollywood come out? When we started film, there was no Nollywood as a name," Osuofia stated.
He credited Yoruba filmmakers, including the legendary Hubert Ogunde, for initiating the home-video tradition and helping popularize it across the country.
"Ogunde is not Igbo. I am telling you that Yoruba started it," Owoh said.
Osuofia maintained that his position had been misunderstood, emphasizing that his claim was specifically about home video and not about who created Nollywood.
"Yoruba did not start Nollywood; they started home video and the rest," he concluded.
The clarification comes amid ongoing debates about the true origins of Nigeria's film industry, with multiple stakeholders offering competing narratives about its founding roots.