Veteran Nollywood actress, Maureen Solomon-Okereke, has opened up about why she stepped away from acting at the peak of her career, explaining she did so to focus on raising her children.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Rubbin’ Minds, the actress noted that balancing motherhood with the demands of filming became increasingly challenging after the birth of her second child.
“It was a difficult decision to leave my work and care for my family. When I had my son for the first time, it was easy. I could take him to work, film sets, and the locations, but when my second child arrived, it was not so straightforward.”
Despite leaving a successful acting career, Solomon-Okereke said she has no regrets about prioritising her family.
“Regrets how? I have a 20-year-old, and I have a 19-year-old now… I don’t regret it at all. It reached a point where my daughter was about 5 years old, and things weren’t going well, so I had to pause and give my time to them.”
Now back in Nollywood, the actress said her return has been smooth, noting that she continued to follow the industry’s growth even during her years away. She added that taking time off for her family did not diminish her passion for acting.
Solomon-Okereke also revealed that her acting career started unexpectedly after she accompanied her elder sister to an audition.
“The opportunity actually came on its own, I didn’t go looking for it… they were giving people a script to read, it got to my turn, and I read, that was it… my sister went to check for her name and saw my name.”
Commenting on the industry’s increasing focus on social media influence, she dismissed the idea that an actor’s worth should be measured by their online following, saying, “I don’t believe in it.”
