Zeb leaves Isidingo in latest soapie intrigue

But Don Mlangeni-Nawa, who has played the beloved character for 15 years, has recently become the latest actor to leave a soap under controversial circumstances.

Mlangeni-Nawa has been in disputes with Isidingo since last year when he refused to endorse a major bank through a line in his script. Rumours were rife that the actor had been fired from the soap, but Endemol, the company that produces Isidingo, denied this.

A source has revealed that Mlangeni-Nawa only left Isidingo recently and made the decision to leave of his own accord, but is still attending a series of a disciplinary hearings with the production company.

In a statement, Endemol’s managing director Sivan Pillay says: “Mlangeni-Nawa’s lack of discipline and general disrespect for the show, the company, its many great actors and the SABC, saw Endemol take action (both verbally and in writing) against the actor after his repeated transgressions on and off set. This disciplinary hearing is unfortunate, but necessary.”

While details with regards to the hearing are not clear, it seems Isidingo management feels disrespected by the actor.

“It is important to note that mutual respect, by and for the entire cast and crew of the show, is something we take very seriously,” Pillay continues. “No one actor or crew member is bigger, or has the right to compromise any part of what makes Isidingo the great show it is today.”

Luthuli Dlamini. Image courtesy of Facebook.com/LuthuliDlamini

This is not the first time a popular actor has been accused of disrupting the production. Earlier this year, former Generations actor Luthuli Dlamini apparently angered the soap’s executive producer Mfundi Vundla when he didn’t call after missing work because of an illness. When Dlamini arrived on the Generations set a few days later, he was shocked to find that Vundla had written him out without any prior warning or discussion.

“I really loved playing Scott,” Dlamini told us in January.

“I am an actor, so I will continue to seek acting opportunities and I will make myself available to anyone who will have me.”

When the principle cast of Generations were on strike last year because of their contracts, Vundla also famously said: “Nobody is bigger than Generations. There are so many people who work to make Generations – it isn’t just the actors.”

Like Mlangeni-Nawa, Dlamini was a big character who brought a degree of excitement to shows. But despite the exit of many of Isidingo’s main cast members and a seeming lack of interest in Generations, the soaps are not afraid to show their best actors the door.

Some of them do come back.

Nambitha Mpumlwana in a scene from Generations.

, who plays Mawande, was also said to have been fired from Generations after it was reported that she made too many demands on set. But apparently, falling ratings after the show lost both Mpumlwana and Dlamini, meant that Vundla had to eat humble pie and ask Mpumlwana to return.

Even though the soap’s co-producer Bongi Ndaba said she was only coming back for a few weeks to “wrap up her scenes”, Mpumlwana has been on screen for a while now.