Nollywood actress Ese Idia has landed a major role in The New Husbands of Lagos, stepping in as Omoye, the wife of Victor, one of the series’ central characters. The cast announcement lands as the show begins its run on ROK.
Idia said she watched the original Husbands of Lagos years ago and called the new production an exciting step, especially the audition. She treated that process like a real test rather than a formality.
Playing Omoye demanded more than showing up as a wife and mother on screen.
“Omoye was a devoted wife and mother who hid herself building and keeping her home, she was a strong woman, I had to do a lot of character development to be able to enter into Omoye, and as she grew, I grew with her. It was very exciting starting a journey with a character and gradually, expanding the kinds of emotions they feel, it’s called a character arc, and Omoye had a lot of arcs,” she said.
The role stretches her range after appearances in In the Right Place and Fortress of Faith. She said she looks for parts that force her out of familiar territory.
“I enjoy roles that challenge me to move away from what is familiar. Omoye allowed me to explore different emotional layers and respond to the changes in her journey. That is what versatility means to me as an actress — being able to inhabit different characters and give each of them a distinct emotional identity.”
Idia shares the screen with Ernest Obi, Linc Edochie, Lolade Okusanya, Tersy Akpata, Maryann Apollo and Jay Franklyn Jituboh, among others. Desmond Elliot and Reuben Reng direct the series. Mary Remmy Njoku serves as executive producer.
Promotional material for the show frames Lagos marriages as glossy on the surface and messy underneath, packed with love, ambition, betrayal and secrets. The New Husbands of Lagos begins airing on ROK (DStv 168 and GOtv 9), with episodes timed from Saturday, September 5.