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VIDEO: Will Smith Destroys the Nigerian Accent in New Movie-Concussion | We Have GREAT Actors in Nigeria Too…

Will Smith
Will Smith

Multiple-award winning actor-Will Smith is playing a Nigerian on the big screen—in his new movie-Concussion, which hits the cinema this December. And the controversy is about the ACCENT…

In Concussion, Will Smith stars as Dr Bennet Omalu, the real-life Nigerian-born forensic pathologist and neuropathologist who uncovered a connection between brain trauma and the NFL in 2002 after performing an autopsy on former professional football player Mike Webster.

The movie is based on a true story—but for many, the accent is far from anything we know as Nigerian.

Of course you do not expect Will Smith to sound like Tunde from Lagos, but we expected a resemblance—at least, and for the many who have seen the trailer, Smith fails to deliver on the accent.

On social media, Nigerian satirist Elnathan tweeted “Hollywood created an accent for ‘Africans’ which they use whether the person is Liberian, Nigerian or Rwandan. Will Smith learnt it well.”

Couldn’t this have been a big Hollywood opportunity for a true Nigerian actor like Ramsey Noah? We don’t want to mention Jim Iyke, because that dude forces himself to sound more American than Smith.

Will Smith is a world class actor but it’s obvious he failed with the Nigerian accent—perhaps, that’s too deep for him. And he hasn’t really been hanging out with a lot of Nigerians that is why he is probably convinced that he has delivered on his mission.

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