Nollywood has given us a lot of iconic pairings over the years, but some actors do their job so well on screen, we find it hard to separate play play from real life. Have you ever looked at a Nollywood pairing and felt deep down that they were an actual couple? We’ve been there too. Here’s a list of some old Nollywood couples that were so good, we thought they were married or dating in real life.
Stella Damasus and Richard Mofe Damijo (RMD)
These two were always married or about to be married in all their films. Look at the material: In When God Says Yes, they were a couple looking for a kidney for RMD; In Engagement Night, she slept with his best friend but they still somehow found their way back to each other; and let’s not forget the wild ass To Rise Again where RMD was Stella Damasus’ ghost baby daddy. It’s not our fault we thought they were together.
Rita Dominic and Jim Iyke
Rumour has it that these two were a thing at one point, but are we really surprised? With her big ass afros and his VPN-acquired Ameritish accent, Jim Iyke and Rita Dominic were the OG Bonnie and Clyde of old Nollywood. One minute they’re sipping cold juice by the beach, and the next thing you know, they’re arguing, with Rita in her thigh-high boots and Jim in his bandanas. We stan a chaotic couple.
Genevieve Nnaji and Ramsey Noah
First off, can we get into Genevieve’s tiara in this picture? Yes, sis, Disney princesses are shaking. Ramsey Noah and Genevieve were the couple to beat back in the day. They’ve dated and married each other onscreen so many times we’ve lost count. Power of Love, Butterfly, Honey, The Break-Up, Pain and Gain, Super Love or the one where she was a village Cinderella and he was the crown prince. These two had so much chemistry together, we were rooting for them to become a thing.
Ini Edo and Muna Obiekwe
Before Muna Obiekwe made the controversial Men in Love, he was one of Nollywood’s most-in-demand lover boys. While he shared the screen and his fictional heart with everyone from Genevieve Nnaji to Oge Okoye, it was his films with Ini Edo that had us screaming “God, when abeg?”. Once you saw Ini Edo in a campus setting with spaghetti straps and excess lipgloss, you immediately knew that Muna Obiekwe would pop up at some point. He fought Jim Iyke for her heart in The Cat and went against Stephanie Okereke and her cult group in Beautiful Faces. Can your man fight?
Genevieve and Emeka Ike
Back then, if Genevieve was not acting opposite Ramsey Noah, best believe she was serving melanated couple goals alongside Emeka Ike. He was her knight in shining armour in For Better for Worse and Pain and Gain, showed her pepper in Not Man Enough and let’s not forget when he blinded and married her in Two Together. Through all of this, they made us root for them and honestly, we’re still shocked they weren’t a thing. Na wa o.
Van Vicker and Nadia Buari
This is not the time for jollof or Shatta Wale wars, we all know that once upon a time, Nollywood and Ghollywood were one wood. Following the success of Beyonncé the President’s Daughter, Nadia and Van became the biggest Ghanaian exports to Nigeria. They were so big, Nollywood had them shooting village movies in the East. Why did these two work so well together? Well, we all thought they were dating. Look at the image above and tell us you didn’t see it back then.
Stella Damasus and Desmond Elliot
They didn’t do much together, but these two were iconic AF. Just look at the poster for Missing Angel, the film where he was the angel of death sent to collect her soul, but somehow ended up getting trapped by her snail. Interesting times. There was also Behind Closed Doors and a couple of others. Long story short, we thought they were a thing at some point but apparently, we were clowns.
