Some people know what they want to be from a very young age. While the biggest concern of a lot of Nigerian children was not failing their exams and doing well in school, there were some child actors and actresses trying to make their way into the Nigerian movie industry. Here are some top actors and actresses who started acting at a very young age, showcasing their talent and dedication to the craft.
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Chinenye Nnebe
Chinenye Nnebe is a very talented actress, model, and TV personality born on April 5th, 1997, in Asaba, Delta State. She is the daughter of popular movie producer, director, and costumier, Uche Nanacy, who has been in the movie industry for over a decade. Chinenye has starred in hit movies such as Save The Baby, Not My Queen, Dirty Diamond, Fulton Mountain, and has worked alongside actors such as Hanks Anuku, Queen Nwokoye, and a host of other great veteran actors. She got a very big break when she starred in the 2015 hit movie, Dry, playing the role of Young Zara.
Regina Daniels
This beautiful and talented actor born in Asaba, Delta State is one of the most talked about actresses in Nigeria. Regina joined the movie industry in 2007 and rose to fame in 2010 after featuring in the hit movie, Miracle Child, a wonderful movie in which she acted alongside Chinwe Owo.
Williams Uchemba
Williams Uchemba is a very talented Nollywood actor, movie producer, model, comedian, philanthropist, entrepreneur, motivational speaker, and television personality. He joined the Nigerian movie industry in 2000 as a child actor and rose to fame in 2001 after featuring in the Nollywood hit movie, The Journey of the Dead, a movie where he acted alongside Pete Edochie, Olu Jacobs, and Ramsey Nouah. This movie shot him into the limelight, and he subsequently went on to star in movies such as Beyond Belief and Sorrows of Becky. In 2019, he once again hit a goldmine when he starred in the super successful movie, Sugar Rush, that once again introduced him in a big way to Nigerian audiences who may have forgotten about him.
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Sharon Ezeamaka
Sharon Ezeamaka is a very famous actress who started acting at the age of 5. She joined Nollywood in 1997 when she starred in the movie, Narrow Escape, alongside Nollywood giant, Pete Edochie. She shot to fame in 2000 when she acted in the blockbuster movie, Dear Mother, alongside Hilda Dokubo. This movie won her the award for Best Kid Actress at the African Movie Academy Awards.
Somadina Adinma
Born May 8, 1999, Somadina started his acting career as a child actor in 2006. He got his first role in the movie, Beyond Death, when he acted along with Osita Iheme. Beyond being an actor, Somadina is also a model and TV presenter.
Destiny Etiko
Born August 12, 1994, in Enugu State, Destiny Etiko joined the Nollywood industry while being in primary school. She acted in her first movie, Twin Brothers, as a child actor alongside Osita Iheme, Hanks Anuku, and the late Sam Loco-Efe. She rose to fame in 2012 after starring in the hit movie, Idemili.
Funke Akindele
Funke Akindele is a very talented actress best known for playing the character of Jenifa in all her Jenifa movies and her wildly popular and long-running Jenifa's Diary series. However, many do not know that Funke started as a child actor. The actress starred in the sitcom I Need to Know from 1998 to 2002 playing the character of Bisi, a brilliant secondary school student. Since then the actress has gone on to make a name for herself in this industry and is now one of the heavyweights in the business.
Junior Pope Odonwodo
After studying accounting, Odonwodo initially pursued a career in accounting but later turned to acting in 2004, starting with minor roles. He made his debut in the 2004 film Lost in the Jungle, playing a minor part. Junior Pope was widely praised for his acting talent.
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Pope died in a boat accident on the River Niger in Anambra State while traveling to Asaba, Nigeria, to shoot a movie. Three crew members also lost their lives in the incident.
| Name | Year of Debut | Notable Movies |
|---|---|---|
| Chinenye Nnebe | 2007 | Save The Baby, Not My Queen, Dry |
| Regina Daniels | 2007 | Miracle Child |
| Williams Uchemba | 2000 | The Journey of the Dead, Sugar Rush |
| Sharon Ezeamaka | 1997 | Narrow Escape, Dear Mother |
| Somadina Adinma | 2006 | Beyond Death |
| Destiny Etiko | Primary School | Twin Brothers, Idemili |
| Funke Akindele | 1998 | I Need to Know, Jenifa series |
| Junior Pope Odonwodo | 2004 | Lost in the Jungle |
Other Notable Nigerian Personalities
J. P. Clark-Bekederemo
J. P. John Pepper Clark-Bekederemo (6 April 1935 - 13 October 2020) was a Nigerian poet and playwright. Born in Kiagbodo, Nigeria, to an Ijaw father and Urhobo mother, Clark was a direct descendant of the powerful chief and trader Bekederemo of Kiagbodo. He received his early education at the Native Authority School, Okrika (Ofinibenya-Ama), in Burutu LGA (then Western Ijaw) and at the prestigious Government College in Ughelli. He had his BA degree in English language, at the University of Ibadan, where he edited various magazines, including the Beacon and The Horn. Upon graduation in 1960, he worked as an information officer in the Ministry of Information, in the old Western Region of Nigeria, as features editor of the Daily Express, and as a research fellow at the Institute of African Studies, University of Ibadan. He served for several years as a professor of English at the University of Lagos, a position from which he retired in 1980.
Clark's dramatic work includes Song of a Goat - premiered at the Mbari Club in 1961 - a tragedy cast in the Greek classical mode in which the impotence of Zifa, the protagonist, causes his wife Ebiere and his brother Tonye to indulge in an illicit love relationship that results in suicide. This play was followed by a sequel, The Masquerade (1964), in which Dibiri's rage culminates in the death of his suitor Tufa. Clark's contribution to other genres includes his translation of the Ozidi Saga (1977), an oral literary epic of the Ijaw that in its local setting would normally take seven days to perform, his critical study The Example of Shakespeare (Evanston: Northwestern University Press, 1970), in which he articulates his aesthetic views about poetry and drama and his journalistic essays in the Daily Express, Daily Times, and other newspapers. He is also the author of the controversial America, Their America (Deutsch, 1964; Heinemann African Writers Series No. 50, 1969), a travelogue in which he criticizes American society and its values.
As one of Africa's pre-eminent and distinguished authors, he continued to play an active role in literary affairs, a role for which he increasingly gained international recognition.
On 6 December 2011, to honour the life and career of Professor John Pepper Clark-Bekederemo, a celebration was held at Lagos Motor Boat Club, Awolowo Road, Ikoyi, for the publication of J. P. Clark: A Voyage, The definitive biography of the main animating force of African poetry, written by playwright Femi Osofisan.
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Chiwetel Ejiofor
English actor, writer, and director Chiwetel Ejiofor is renowned for his portrayal of Solomon Northup in 12 Years a Slave (2013), for which he received Academy Award and Golden Globe Award nominations, along with the BAFTA Award for Best Actor. He is also known for playing Okwe in Dirty Pretty Things (2002), the Operative in Serenity (2005), Lola in Kinky Boots (2005), Luke in Children of Men (2006), Dr. Adrian Helmsley in 2012 (2009) and Dr. Vincent Kapoor in The Martian (2015).
Chiwetelu Umeadi Ejiofor was born on July 10, 1977, in Forest Gate, London, England, to Nigerian parents, Obiajulu (Okaford), a pharmacist, and Arinze Ejiofor, a doctor. Chiwetel attended Dulwich College in South-East London. By the age of 13, he was appearing in numerous school and National Youth Theatre productions and subsequently attended the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts (LAMDA).
Ejiofor caught the attention of Steven Spielberg who cast him in the critically acclaimed Amistad (1997) alongside Morgan Freeman and Anthony Hopkins. He has since been seen on the big screen in numerous features including Stephen Frears' Dirty Pretty Things (2002) (for which he won Best Actor at the British Independent Film Awards, the Evening Standard Film Awards, and the San Diego Film Critics Society Awards), Love Actually (2003), Woody Allen's Melinda and Melinda (2004), Kinky Boots (2005), Inside Man (2006), Children of Men (2006), American Gangster (2007) and Talk to Me (2007), for which his performance won him an Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Actor.
Ejiofor has balanced his film and television commitments with a number of prestigious stage productions. In 2008, his portrayal of the title role in Michael Grandage's "Othello" at the Donmar Warehouse alongside Ewan McGregor was unanimously commended and won him best actor at the 2008 Laurence Olivier Awards and Evening Standard Theatre Awards. He also received nominations in the South Bank Show Awards and the What's On Stage Theatregoers' Choice Awards in 2009. His other stage roles include Roger Michell's "Blue/Orange" in 2000 which received the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Play, and the same year Tim Supple's "Romeo and Juliet" in which Ejiofor portrayed the title role.
Following his television debut in the series episode Deadly Voyage (1996), Ejiofor has complimented his film and theatre work on the small screen in productions including Murder in Mind (2001), created by the award-winning writer Anthony Horowitz, Trust (2003), Twelfth Night, or What You Will (2003), and Canterbury Tales (2003). His television appearance in the hard-hitting emotional drama Tsunami: The Aftermath (2006) alongside Toni Collette, Sophie Okonedo and Tim Roth earned him a nomination for a Golden Globe Award as well as an NAACP Image award.
Ejiofor also appeared in such notable films as Endgame (2009), Channel 4's moving drama set in South Africa for which his performance earned him a Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Performance by an Actor in a Miniseries; Roland Emmerich's action feature 2012 (2009), opposite John Cusack, Danny Glover and Thandiwe Newton; and Salt (2010), opposite Angelina Jolie and Liev Schreiber. In 2013, he starred in Half of a Yellow Sun (2013) and 12 Years a Slave (2013), receiving an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor for the latter film.
Sophie Okonedo
Sophie Okonedo is a British actress. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Tatiana Rusesabagina in Hotel Rwanda (2004).
Okonedo was born within London in 1968. Her parents were Henry Okonedo (1939-2009) and Joan Allman. Her father was British Nigerian employed as a government worker. Her mother was a British Jew employed as a Pilates teacher. Sophie's maternal grandparents were Yiddish-speaking emigrants to the United Kingdom, one from Poland and the other from Russia.
Okonedo made her film debut at 23, in the coming-of-age film Young Soul Rebels (1991). The film was a historical fiction work, examining the youth culture of London in the late 1970s, and the interactions between different culture movements: the skinheads, the punks, and the soul-boys. Sophie Okonedo played Tracy, the girlfriend of the main character Chris (Valentine Nonyela).
In 1995, Okonedo gained the role of Moira Levitt in the first season of the prison drama The Governor (1995-1996). The series primarily concerned the lives of a prison's staff members. Also in 1995, Okonedo played the role of the Wachati Princess, Ace Ventura's love interest in the comedy film Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls. In the film, the virgin princess of an African tribe has been engaged to a heir from another tribe, but disagrees with the arranged marriage and attempts to seduce pet detective Ace Ventura (Jim Carrey) instead. Ace has recently become a Buddhist monk and has taken an oath of celibacy, but feels tempted by the offer.
From 1996 to 1997, Okonedo played the main role of Kelly Booth in the medical drama series Staying Alive. In 2000, Okonedo played a main role in the legal drama mini-series In Defence. While originally planned to be a multi-season television series, the series was cut short due to poor ratings.
In 2000, Okonedo co-stared in the dramatic television film Never Never. She was nominated for a "Royal Television Society Award for Best Actor - Female", for her role in the film. In 2002, Okonedo played the role of the prostitute Juliette in the social thriller film Dirty Pretty Things, which depicted the lives of impoverished immigrants in London.
In 2003, Okonedo voiced the role of Alison Cheney in the flash-animated series Scream of the Shalka, a spin-off of Doctor Who. In the series, Alison is a barmaid at a Lancashire village who becomes the newest time-traveling companion of the Doctor (played by Richard E. Grant). Alison also befriends the Master (played by Derek Jacobi), an arch-enemy-turned-assistant of the Doctor who is permanently trapped within the time machine known as the Tardis.
In 2004, 36-year-old Okonedo had her breakthrough role as the co-star of the historical drama film Hotel Rwanda, depicting the Rwandan genocide (1994). Okonedo played the historical figure Tatiana Rusesabagina (1958-), a professional nurse from the Tutsi ethnic group who helped over a 1000 individuals to escape the massacre. Okonedo won a Black Reel Award for Best Actress for her role. She was also nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, but the Award for that year was won by rival actress Cate Blanchett (1969-).
In 2005, Okonedo had the role of Sithandra in the science fiction film Æon Flux. The film was set in the 25th century, within the fictional city-state of Bregna. The characters Æon Flux (played by Charlize Theron) and Sithandra are female assassins, tasked with assassinating Trevor Goodchild, the local head-of-state. But in the process, Æon finds out that the city-state's main rebel-organization is actually a tool for a coup d'état orchestrated by other politicians. And also discovers some dark secrets about the city's past. The film gained a worldwide box office total of 52 million dollars, smaller than its actual budget,
In 2006, Okonedo played the intelligence agent "Mrs. Jones" in the spy film Stormbreaker, an adaptation of the Alex Rider novel series by Anthony Horowitz (1955-). In the film, Mrs. Jones (full name "Tulip Jones" in the novels) is an agent of the Special Operations Division of MI6, and the de facto second-in-command of MI6. When subordinate agent Ian Rider gets assassinated by enemy agents, Mrs. Jones recruits Ian's nephew and surrogate son Alex Rider as a replacement agent. The film gained about 24 million dollars at the international box office, receiving only a limited release in the United States.
Also in 2006, Okonedo played the role of Anna in the British comedy-drama film Scenes of a Sexual Nature, an anthology film depicting seven loosely connected stories, all set in the nature reserve of Hampstead Heath within Greater London. Anna was depicted as a woman suffering from extreme mood swings, which convince her boyfriend to leave her alone in the nature reserve. The depressed Anna is approached by the weirdly-acting stranger Noel (played by Tom Hardy) who attempts to cheer her up and befriend her. Anna is at turns amused and annoyed by Noel, attempts to have sex with him, and then abruptly abandons him due to another sudden change in her mood. The film opened in niche cinemas.
Also in 2006, Okonedo played the role of Susie Carter in the mini-series Tsunami: The Aftermath, which depicted the aftermath of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami. In the film, Susie is a young mother who is searching for her daughter Martha Carter (Jazmyn Maraso). Martha was swept away by the tsunami, and her whereabouts are unknown for most of the series. Okonedo won an "NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special" for this role, and was nominated for a Golden Globe.
Okonedo's next films were the comedy-drama Martian Child (2007), the drama film The Secret Life of Bees (2008), and the biographical film Skin (2008). The last two films allowed Okonedo to be nominated for several Black Reel Awards, NAACP Image Awards, Satellite Awards, and British Independent Film Award. Despite the critical acclaim for her acting roles, Okonedo never actually won these awards.
In 2010, 42-year-old Okonedo was appointed an officer of the Order of the British Empire, a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences. The Order was established in 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom (reigned 1910-1936) and counts among its members several actors.
In 2010, Okonedo returned to the Doctor Who franchise, playing another character in the most recent Doctor Who television series. She was cast as Elizabeth X (nicknaned "Liz Ten"), a Queen regnant of the United Kingdom in the 29th century. In the series, Elizabeth is immortal, but has limited access to her own memories due to a series of mind-wipes. She was depicted as still alive and reigning in an episode set in the 52nd century, at which point she was over 2300 years old.
Okonedo was limited to television roles for much of the early 2010s, but returned to theatrical films with the post-apocalyptic science fiction film After Earth (2013). The film is set in the 31st century, when the planet Earth has long been abandoned by humanity. Most humans live in the colony world Nova Prime, which is protected from alien threats by the Ranger Corps. Okonedo was cast in the role of Faia Raige, wife of the General Cypher Raige (Will Smith), the commanding officer of the Rangers. Early in the film, Faia convinces Cypher to take their son Kitai Raige (Jaden Smith) with him in mission, as a bonding experience. Young Kitai's application to become a Ranger has already being rejected due to reckless behavior, Kitai suffers from survivor's guilt for playing a part in his sister's death, and his father sees him as a failure. Faia's request for a bonding experience results in father and son being left stranded on planet Earth, the only two humans alive on the planet. The film was poorly received by critics, but earned about 244 million dollars at the worldwide box office. Becoming the commercially most successful film in Okonedo's entire career at this point.
Okonedo's next film was the political drama War Book (2014). The film depicts British civil servants who participate in a war-game, concerning government reactions in a potential nuclear war. In 2016, Okonedo had a major role in the mini-series The Hollow Crown: The Wars of the Roses, depicting the historical Wars of the Roses (1455-1487), a series of English civil wars involving rival branches of the royal family. Okonedo was cast in the role of Queen consort Margaret of Anjou (1430-1482, terms as Queen 1445-1461, 1470-1471). The historical Margaret was the wife and consort of Henry VI of England (1421-1471, reigned 1422-1461, 1470-1471), the mother of Edward of Westminster, Prince of Wales (1453-1471), and the mother-in-law of Anne Neville (1456-1485). Due to Henry's health problems and Edward's underage status, Margaret served as the de facto head of the House of Lancaster and the Lancastrian military faction in early phases of the war. The defeat of her army at the Battle of Tewkesbury (1471) caused the deaths of both her husband and her son, and allowed the rival House of York to dominate the English throne until 1485.
In 2018, Okonedo returned to voice acting. She voiced Kanga the kangaroo of the Hundred Acre Wood in the fantasy film Christopher Robin, a sequel to the Winnie-the-Pooh novels of Alan Alexander Milne (1882-1956). The film depicts an adult Christopher Robin as a World War II veteran and aging businessman. He thinks that his childhood friends from the Hundred Acre Wood were imaginary, until said friends come searching for him. He has aged, but they have not. The film earned about 198 million dollars at the worldwide box office, becoming the highest-grossing film in Disney's Winnie the Pooh franchise.
In 2019, Okonedo played the seer Lady Hatton in the superhero film Hellboy, the first superhero film of her career. The film earned about 40 million dollars at the worldwide box office, lower than its own budget. The film was criticized for its excessive gore, including an opening scene where King Arthur mutilates the corpse of his enemy Nimue.
Also in 2019, Okonedo was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2010, and Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 2019., for her services in drama. She is living with her only daughter Aoife Okonedo Martin in Muswell Hill, a suburban district of north London. Aoife is employed as a Personal Trainer. At 51, Okonedo continues to work regularly in her chosen field.
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