Veteran actor Macks Papo has played roles on some of the biggest TV shows in Mzansi, but told TshisaLIVE that if he ever feels like he is disrespected or clashing with producers, he leaves.
Macks featured on Egoli, Rhythm City and Isibaya before taking up his latest role as Marothi on Skeem Saam.
He said that he learnt long ago to speak his mind and not take the blame for things that he had no part in, like declining ratings or troubles on set.
"When thing go wrong on a production, do you know the first person they blame? Actors! I am the type of person that says 'No. Let's sit down and look at the root of the problem'. Everywhere I go I speak truth to power and authority."
He labelled himself a nonconformist and admits that it has sometimes got him into trouble on set.
"I question everything. From scripts to how scenes are directed. It is how I learn. I am free spirited. I am also spiritual and if something does not resonate with my soul or I feel like it is time to move on, I will."
The actor has been in the industry for over two decades and said it saddened him that social media followers and likes were the new currency in the industry.
"If I went along with those things, the popularity contests, I would have been very discouraged. I am very sensitive but also positive. I realise that I work hard and I have made a name for myself so the popularity contests don't phase me. I have never been a slave to social media, what it says or what it demands from me," he added.
He said that acting was a calling that was for the skilled, not the popular, and he is working on developing talent in his next step as a director by looking at potential.
"Just before my time ended on Egoli, I asked them to train me in directing. I have tapped into it a few times, but as a creative it is something that is in my blood."
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