How the nude scene in Glamour Girls affected my marriage and led to my expulsion from the church – Zack Orji

Nollywood actor Zack Orji has spoken candidly about how his role in the 90s hit film “Glamour Girls” affected his marriage – particularly his involvement in a nude scene with his co-star Eucharia Anunobi.

He admitted that the scene sparked negative rumors and gossip that affected his marriage and even led to his pastor expelling him from the church.

Orji made this known in a candid conversation with Emmanuel Ehumadu, host of the podcast “Nollywood Hardcore: The Legend’s Untold Story”.

Orji said he had problems with his wife: “Even though she is an actress, they put a lot of pressure on her,” he said.

Orji revealed that his pastor contacted him and gave him numerous disturbing reports on the matter, after which he suspended him.

“My pastor invited me. I was a member of the church’s board of trustees at the time. He said he had received too many calls from other members of the board of trustees. ‘How can Zach do something like that? This is a scandal.’

“He said he called me because he wanted to suspend me, but he wanted to inform me first, so I ended up being suspended for a month.

“He said he wouldn’t tell anyone, it was just between us, but I was suspended from all church activities at that time.

But what was intended to be a private matter unexpectedly became public when news of his suspension leaked to the media.

“While this was happening, I was on another set of a movie called Golden Fleece. We were shooting in Ikeja GRA. A guy called Alex was very well known in the industry at the time. He worked for Punch Newspapers.

“He came to the set where I was filming and said, ‘I just want confirmation from you before I go to print. Is it true that you have been suspended from your church?’

“I asked, ‘Who told you that?’ He said, ‘I’m sorry. I can’t reveal the source of my information.'”

“I was so angry because the priest told me it was confidential. I went back and told the priest what had happened. I asked him how a reporter from Punch newspaper had found out about it. He just looked at me and couldn’t say anything.”

Orji stated that as a result of the incident, he left the church and requested that his name be removed from the board of trustees and all related documents.

He said although the pastor later contacted him and informed him that they had withdrawn the suspension and did not want him to leave, Orji stated that his decision was final and he had decided to move on.

When asked if he regretted playing the role, he said “no.”

The 1994 two-part film “Glamour Girls,” directed by Chika Onukwufor, was known for its controversial and provocative portrayal of sex work and gender issues, sparking conversations and debates in Nigeria.

The film featured a notable cast including Liz Benson, Ngozi Ezeonu, Pat Attah and Ernest Obi, and included a controversial bathtub scene involving Orji and Anunobi.

“We looked like we were naked, but we weren’t. She wasn’t naked. I wasn’t naked, but it was so well done because as an actor, your main job is not only to create the illusion in the audience’s mind that you are someone else, but it’s also your job to create believability in the mind of your audience so that they believe whatever they see you doing is real,” the actor said.

In 2022, Netflix remastered the film “Glamour Girls” in a modern retelling.