According to Report From VANGUARD, Veteran filmmaker and director, Lancelot Oduwa Imasuen, has issued a passionate call to some of Nollywood’s biggest stars, urging them to reconnect with and give back to the industry that made them household names.

Celebrating 30 years in Nollywood, Imasuen fondly called De’ Guvnor didn’t mince words as he expressed concern over the growing silence and absence of stars like Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde, Genevieve Nnaji, Jim Iyke, and Emeka Ike, who he said have seemingly turned their backs on the industry.

“You can’t be bigger than the industry that gave you a name,” Lancelot declared during a conversation with Vanguard. “Nollywood gave us fame and fortune. How can those who were once nobodies now ignore the platform that built them?”

He decried the current division within the industry, pointing to the damaging rift between “Old” and “New” Nollywood. According to him, the golden era of Nollywood saw practitioners grow side-by-side, with equal respect for talents behind and in front of the camera.

“No one looked down on anyone. We all evolved together,” he said. “But today, the same Nollywood that created legends is now suffering abandonment from those very legends.”

Imasuen’s comments come from a place of deep personal connection. He began his journey in the industry in 1987, with his first big break coming in 1995 when he directed the Igbo-language film Adaku. Since then, he has become a pillar in Nigerian cinema, credited with directing several classics and mentoring the next generation of filmmakers.