It’ll be wrong to belittle Zubby Michael.
If I’m to mention the names of actors who led the resurgence of Asabawood, he’s among the top 3. And that is no small industry no matter how folks make it seem.
Asabawood, Asabawood.
Tyler Perry is like the Asaba of Hollywood and he’s been k!lling it in that lane.
Despite the criticisms Tyler faces for churning out poorly written movies, his works have a cult following among a niche audience (the African-American community).
So does Zubby’s type of movies in this part of the world.
Everything is not for everybody.
And that’s for folks who have been bringing up Timini’s levels in the cinema world.
But then, one would think Zubby isn’t a box office draw as well.
Omo Ghetto: The Saga, Shantytown and some other cinema movies he’s featured in, saw plenty of people across social media hold endless discussions about his characters, minor roles as they were.
If he wasn’t relevant such wouldn’t have been the case.
Now that he has a leg in both sides of the industry (Asaba and Lagos), are we still debating who’s bigger between him and Timini?
Let’s be clear, I’m not a fan of Zubby’s acting. I haven’t seen Timini works.
But since the conversation is about who’s bigger, you’d be out of your mind to give it to Timini, whom the vast majority of Nigerians do not see on their screens unless they’re subscribed to streaming services.
Plus, he doesn’t have the oomph that Zubby commands.
There’s a reason Zubby can make appearances in star-studded, power trip music videos like ‘Levels’ and ‘Doings’ and he wouldn’t seem out of place!
It cannot be Timini.
Also, Timini for now lacks a cross-generational and regional fan base, something that Zubby can boast of.
The people checking for Timini are 18 – 30 plus folks who are drawn to his good looks, slay game and social media presence.
I bet some of them haven’t seen him on their TV screens since Tinsel and Shuga. Because na who don chop dey do Netflix.
While the other actor’s vast audience are heavily interested in his content and will likely see him on TV if they tune in now. So who’s winning in terms of numbers, viewership and mass appeal?
Additionally, Zubby has been grinding hard since the old Nollywood era and achieved fame on his own merit.
It’ll be unfair to compare him to an actor who got introduced to many through his famous older sister and still has a long way to go. AMVCA win or not.
