TAKEAWAYS

• Ellah says she was handpicked for the lead role of Isabelle in Second Chance after a closed audition.
• She believes being a dark-skinned woman made her an unlikely choice for a lead role at the time.
• The former Miss Uganda credits both the beauty pageant and Big Brother Africa for helping launch her acting career.

Former Miss Uganda Stellah Nantumbwe, popularly known as Ellah, has shared how landing the lead role in the popular television drama Second Chance became one of the biggest turning points of her career.

Speaking during an interview on The Rising Phoenix Podcast, Ellah reflected on her journey from beauty queen to actress and the challenges she faced entering an industry she says was heavily influenced by colorism.

According to Ellah, winning Miss Uganda gave her a platform that opened doors in the entertainment industry, while her appearance on Big Brother Africa expanded her visibility beyond Uganda.

“Miss Uganda does give you a platform. I know we say that and people hate hearing that because it becomes like a pageant thing. It does give you a platform, a place to stand on,” she said.

She added that Big Brother Africa also played a significant role in exposing her to a wider audience.

“What that did was open up doors with people who were saying, ‘Oh, maybe we need her in our show,’” Ellah explained.

The actress revealed that she was handpicked for the role of Isabelle in Second Chance after a closed audition process. Interestingly, she was the last person to audition and initially doubted she would get the part.

“I didn’t think at the time that I would get it because I think the time that I took on the role, the industry was very colorist,” she said.

Ellah noted that lighter-skinned actresses were often favored for leading roles in film and television at the time, making her casting a surprise even to herself.

“I was the spanner in the works of having a dark-skinned woman like myself leading a TV series as heavily invested in as Second Chance,” she recalled.

Despite eventually securing the role, Ellah admitted she was extremely nervous when the first episode aired. She feared viewers would reject both her character and her performance.

“I thought I was going to just be the most hated character, the underdog of sorts,” she said.

Instead, the response from audiences exceeded her expectations.

“The response online overwhelmed me. I wasn’t even ready for what was happening,” she revealed.

The actress also disclosed that Second Chance was her first major acting production, forcing her to learn on the job while working alongside experienced industry players.

“That was my first big production. I had to learn so many things. And to this day, I’m still learning. Every time I’m in a space where we have cameras rolling, I’m trying to learn,” she said.

Years later, Second Chance remains one of the productions most closely associated with Ellah’s career, helping establish her as one of Uganda’s recognizable television actresses.