Ibrahim Suleiman wants you to know that Dayo is nothing like him. When he first read the script for Uyoyou Adia’s Evi, which left cinemas after its March 27 theatrical run and is now doing the festival circuit, his immediate reaction was judgment. “To be honest, I judged him. Hard,” Suleiman says. “Because Dayo’s personality is incredibly far from who Ibrahim is. All my home training screamed at his lack of said home training.” He laughs at this before adding, “But I was also very excited to play Dayo. He was a lot of fun to become.”
Evi follows Evi-Oghene Donalds (Osas Okonyon), a gifted but arrogant Afrobeats star who loses everything when her record label drops her without compensation. Dayo enters as a celebrated musician with writer’s block who sees Evi as the solution to his creative drought. He calls her “my muse” repeatedly throughout the film, each utterance designed to flatter and trap in equal measure.
What saves the character from becoming a walking red flag is Suleiman’s attention to nuance. “The writer/Director was very collaborative in her approach to how she wanted us to play Dayo,” he explains. “The dialogue was written, but she made sure to make it clear that mannerisms, tone, cadence, etc were up to me in terms of how I wanted to play it per scene.”
That freedom extended to the infamous “my muse” repetition. “Even the way Dayo said ‘my muse’ was slightly different in each scene. These nuances do compound into a less gimmicky portrayal, thankfully.”
Charm as Weapon
For an actor whose career has been built on playing “lovable, morally sound characters,” Dayo offered something different. “I find that playing the villain is a lot more fun,” Suleiman admits. “It was nice to switch it up and show a little bit of the range I’ve been telling anybody who cares to listen that I have.”
The role came about through a years-old conversation with Adia. “A couple of years ago, Uyoyou told me she would love to see me play a villain, and I said I look forward to that. So when she called me about Dayo, she was like, ‘I have come to fulfil our dream of seeing the darker side of you on screen.'”
Adia wanted Dayo to register as “the villain everyone loves to hate,” which meant keeping him charming enough to seduce while revealing enough darkness to justify the hatred. “Uyoyou wanted Dayo to be the villain everyone loves to hate, but not portray him as sleazy, irritating or unlikeable. The charm still had to come through. So we kept him polite, warm and smooth (at least until he wasn’t).”
Suleiman’s approach to Dayo’s manipulation centered on understanding the insecurity driving it. “I think Dayo saw a reflection of himself in Evi. Struggling for identity in an industry that tries to dictate how you portray yourself, just so nobody ‘chews you up and spits you out.'”
The character recognizes Evi’s vulnerability because he shares it. “I think he understood her. Because he has been there (and is still there to a certain degree). Which is why he knew exactly what to say or do to manipulate her for as long as he did.”
That psychological understanding translated into physical choices. “For every scene Osas Okonyon and I played together, I ensured that I subtly invaded her personal space. Either by standing a little too close, or by touching her face, hair or hand in a non-threatening manner, but still without consent. It automatically makes the viewers slightly uncomfortable because everyone subconsciously inserts themselves in scenes as they watch.”
Working With Okonyon
The dynamic between Suleiman and Okonyon benefited from genuine off-camera rapport. “Osas is just superb. She is fun, hardworking, talented and genuinely a good human being. So we got along REALLY well, which made it easy to trust each other and be unselfish in our scenes.”
That ease allowed for playful manipulation between takes. “We laughed a lot on set. So sometimes when we were ready to film a scene where Evi was supposed to be upset with Dayo, I would tease her about something just before the Director says action, just so she’d be fuming a little bit already.” He laughs. “It always worked.”
The Singing Problem
Evi is a musical drama, which presented a challenge for someone who doesn’t consider singing among his talents. “It was probably the most vulnerable I’ve ever felt as an actor, having to sing. It is not one of my many talents so I had to embrace that feeling of inadequacy, and layer the Vanity of Dayo over it. I think that’s what made the cracks in his facade believable.”
The crash courses came from multiple sources. “I think I have a better understanding of how hard vocalists work. Because the amount of crash courses I got from Tyanx, Osas, Michael and Uyoyou, just to make Dayo sound believable was incredible.”
The vulnerability worked in service of the character rather than against it. Dayo’s need to appear effortlessly talented sits alongside the reality that talent alone doesn’t sustain a career, and Suleiman’s own discomfort with singing mirrors that tension.
What the Film Says
Beyond the performances, Evi addresses how the entertainment industry treats talented people, particularly women. “I hope we can get audiences to start conversations about ensuring that talented people have a structure of honest support around them, instead of good-timers, social climbers and users,” Suleiman says.
He appreciates that the film refuses to simplify Evi into a perfect victim. “I like that Evi isn’t portrayed as an innocent, perfect, damsel in distress. She is flawed, made a lot of mistakes, and faced consequences and repercussions. Thankfully, she got a couple of second chances, which most people never do.”
Leaving Work at Work
Some actors carry characters home. Suleiman doesn’t. “Nah, because I went home every day to my family every night, Dayo waited in the car until I got back into the car the next morning to go to set. He didn’t stand a chance of sticking around too long.”
What did stick was an appreciation for the work vocalists put in and a fondness for Dayo’s wardrobe. “I am now comfortable with Ibrahim wearing things from Dayo’s wardrobe. I do like his style. I’ll keep his fashion sense as inspo moving forward. That’s the only bit I’m carrying with me.”
What Comes Next
Having played the charming manipulator, Suleiman knows what he wants. “I’m definitely looking forward to more villain roles. I actually want to play an assassin next. Just putting it out there.”
The declaration is half joke, half manifesto. He’s spent years playing characters audiences were meant to like. Dayo proved he could inhabit unlikeability without losing watchability. An assassin would take that further, trading psychological manipulation for physical violence, charm for cold efficiency.
“I’ve always wanted to play villains more often as I’ve gotten older and more experienced as an actor,” he says. Evi gave him the chance to prove he could do it. Now he’s ready for whatever comes next.
The film showed Suleiman can be more than the romantic lead or the moral center. He can make you uncomfortable while keeping you watching. He can play someone you’re supposed to hate while making you understand why others don’t see it.
For now, Dayo stands as proof that Ibrahim Suleiman can do more than play nice. Whether anyone’s ready to let him play an assassin remains to be seen.
