I Was Drinking Garri While Rejecting Roles – ‘To Kill A Monkey’ Star Actor Bucci Franklin Reveals (VIDEO)

Nollywood actor Bucci Franklin has revealed that he once turned down acting roles while surviving on cheap meals like Ijebu garri and kulikuli, simply because he refused to take on characters that didn’t align with his values or artistic vision.

In a candid reflection, Franklin said he went through months — and even years — without work, choosing instead to wait for roles that resonated with him on a deeper level.

“So, this is my advice to you who are listening: Ijebu garri is very cheap, so you go drink out,” he said. “I had months when I was enjoying my kulikuli and Ijebu garri and saying no to productions that I don’t want to do—especially characters that I don’t connect with, that wouldn’t tell my story.”

Franklin emphasized that acting, for him, goes beyond memorizing lines or fitting into a role. He said each performance carries a piece of his personal truth.

“As an actor, yes, there is the character that you’re playing, but you’re telling a story, right? So a little bit of you is in that character,” he explained.

He also recounted how far he went to prepare for a role as a hot-headed Benin boy, a culture he was not deeply familiar with.

“I had years of not doing anything and I would wait and pray—unspeakable things—to be in that character,” he said. “I played an Edo boy, a Benin boy, a hot-headed Benin boy, you know, and I’ve never been… the longest I’ve been in Benin was 24 hours.”

To connect more authentically with the character, Franklin revealed he went as far as requesting real soil and water from Benin City.

“I told a friend of mine to help me out… because in Benin, the sand is red, it’s muddy. So I wanted the soil and pure water—just to be able to connect with the Edo people. I needed pure water from Benin… because I’ve never been there.”