Popular Nollywood actress, Omotola Jalade has blasted the growing expectation for actors to dance on social media as part of movie promotion, describing the trend as unprofessional.
Omotola, while speaking during an interview on TVC Entertainment, said while she enjoys dancing, it should be a personal choice and not a compulsory requirement for marketing a film.
She explained that the backlash against such promotional trends is largely due to the pressure placed on actors to perform viral stunts to sell their work, noting that there is a clear difference between willingly promoting a project and being forced to do so.
According to the actress, her responsibility is to act in the movie, speak about the project and take part in standard promotional activities, while marketing and advertising should be handled by professionals in charge of distribution.
Omotola added that turning movie promotion into mandatory performances undermines professionalism in the industry and shifts focus away from the creative work itself.
“I’m sorry, but I won’t be dancing to market or promote my movie. It’s not professional. I’ve done the movie, now I just have to go around and promote it,” she said.
Omotola made the statement while speaking ahead of her upcoming cinema project, Mother’s Love, scheduled for release on March 6.