Deyemi Okanlawon: Why I missed out on ‘King of Boys 1’

Deyemi Okanlawon says he auditioned for ‘King of Boys (KOB) 1’ but missed out during its filming because he was “preoccupied”.

The Nigerian actor, who played the role of ‘Adetola Fashina’ in its sequel, spoke during a chat with TheCable Lifestyle.

In the seven-part series which followed from where KOB 1 events left off, Okanlawon played a jittery campaign manager.

He said he successfully auditioned for the prequel as the son of Eniola Salami, a politician and crime overlord.

“I read for KOB 1, had what I consider one of the best auditions of my career. I went there to kill and killed. When the time to shoot came, I was given a date that didn’t work because I was preoccupied around that time,” he said.

“I tried to see how I could get around it to no avail. That’s how I missed out on KOB 1. I wouldn’t say I missed out though because the character died. That’s Salami’s son. It was supposed to be me.

“When I heard KOB2 was coming, I couldn’t wait to be on it. I had my people make calls to see what was going on. Kemi eventually reached out herself saying there was a role she would like me to read for.

“She made me read for a character called Dapo Banjo, so I go in for the live audition. She called me and spoke in a way that revealed I was overqualified, for that character. We had to switch that for Adetola Fashina.”

On his experience embodying the character, Okanlawon disclosed that the role of ‘Adetola Fashina’ was challenging for him.

“That character was so different from who I’m that, if I hadn’t made a choice to accept what Kemi offers, I’d have backed out from the project. It’s about the person behind the film and the standard they come with,” the actor said.

“It’s not about the project or how much you’re going to be paid. I wanted that Dapo Banjo but when she was done explaining who Adetola Fashina was, I took up the latter as a challenge.

“It was one of the most uncomfortable characters I’ve ever played in my life. I’m an alpha male through and through but, in that character, I couldn’t be that.”

Okanlawon revealed that Sola Sobawale, the lead actor, influenced his interpretation of the role assigned to him.

“I have this principle where I simulate discomfort to get out of myself. To get away from Deyemi, I had to be uncomfortable. I started with the research, to see what the physical appearance would look like,” he added.

“So I was exchanging messages with Kemi and had the physical aspect figured out but I couldn’t get the mental part of the character working. I needed to be very uncomfortable around Sola Sobowale on set.

“I would intentionally irritate her so she was always snapping at me because I was always getting in her way.

“She could be rehearsing her lines and I would interrupt. She would snap, ‘leave me alone’. That now translated into the shoot whenever we heard the director scream ‘action’. I brought aboard that energy that she had given off.

“I was subconsciously being very uncomfortable around her. That eventually showed in the character.”