Toyin Abraham, a popular Nollywood actress who delights moviegoers with her method acting, has stated that money has never been her motivation.
The actress said she is undoubtedly one of the richest actresses in Nigeria when appearing as a guest on Ebuke Obi-Channels Ochendu’s TV show “Rubbin’ Minds.”
The “Wives on Strike” heroine claimed she could only speak for herself when asked about how women dominate the production side of filmmaking.
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“I started making money in entertainment around five years ago when I started working with FilmOne,” the 40-year-old actress claimed. I still recall the phone call from Mr. Moses Babatope informing me that my money had been deposited into my account.
“Bigsam (her manager) also called me, and I saw my account. That was the first time I saw over N40m. I’m not joking; I could not sleep. So I called my GodMother to say it’s like this Filmone, people will come and kill me and collect the money.”
According to ‘The Prophetess’ actress, she is driven more by the passion behind her art.
“I began making movies out of passion rather than for financial gain. I just kept working hard because I was so passionate about what I was doing. We had money to buy food and do other things even though there was no money; nonetheless, there was no such heavy alert. I’m one of the wealthiest actresses, and I can say that with assurance. I’m not simply making noise, she continued.
Yoruba industry
Before joining mainstream Nollywood, Toyin, whose extensive movie career has seen her act in some of the most acclaimed Nollywood films, was featured in the Yoruba movie industry.
Even though she has moved on to a broader audience, Toyin, whose acting career started in 2003 after meeting Bukky Wright in Ibadan, said she hasn’t abandoned the Yoruba film industry.
That’s like my source. That’s like my roots. That’s where I started. But the Yorubas would say, “when a child is grown to a certain level that they can be on their own, you have to let them go.” That’s how the Yoruba industry is.
“But what happened then wasn’t about money. Something happened with my ex. And you know, women, we are always very emotional. We want everybody to fight that particular person. But that was then because I was young. I just felt like everybody was against me,” the award-winning actress said.
Personal life
The Marketing graduate from Ibadan Polytechnic married her colleague, Adeniyi Johnson, in 2013 and parted ways with him in 2018. That same year, Adeniyi married fellow actress Oluwaseyi Edun in a quiet ceremony
Toyin, who changed her name from Toyin Aimakhu to Toyin Abraham in 2016, equally moved on.
In July 2019, she wedded Kolawole Ajeyemi, an actor, and they welcomed their first child, a son, in August of the same year.
The Edo state-born actress said that, at that point, she just wanted to be on her own.
“I felt my world was crumbling, and that was just it. Until I met Bigsam, and we started working together. I started getting roles.
“The first movie I did was with Omoni Oboli. So, People saw my acting. And from there, I kept going. And I did mine, and it came out well,” she said