Actor Phenius Bullets (21) was on the verge of joining gangsters on the streets when he received a call from DiepCity producers.
He played Osama, a fearless gangster and he detailed how the role saved him from crime.
He said he shared some similarities with Osama.
“Osama is ruthless and rotten from the streets. He was orphaned at a very young age. His community and everyone around him rejected him so he has a lot of anger inside him,” Phenius said.
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“In real life I also grew up without my parents. My mother, who was the breadwinner, passed away in 2017.
“I was 15 years old at the time and I had just passed grade 9. So when she died me and my siblings became destitute. As a result I was forced to drop out of school and take care of my younger siblings. I had to leave Mpumalanga and go find a job in Soweto. Fortunately I found my father but our relationship was not good. I was troublesome and he kicked me out of his house. Someone told me that I have an older sister somewhere in Joburg. I managed to find her but she wouldn’t accept me because she was staying with her boyfriend. That night I slept in the streets,” he said.
His luck changed last year when he got a call from DiepCity producers.
“I was actually discovered from TikTok.
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“This was my biggest TV break and I’ll always be grateful for it because it saved my life.
“Mandla N saw my video clips from a film and loved my work. I was over the moon. Now that the production is canned I’m focussing on my music,” he said.
