Top 5 Hollywood Stars of Nigerian Origin By Abbas Muhammad
Despite her numerous socio-economic challenges which late celebrated author, Chinua Achebe, blamed squarely on leadership, Nigeria has proven time and time again to be a blessed country especially in terms of human resources. Generations after generations, Nigeria has continued to prove to be the best exporter of talents to the rest of the world, with the way her nationals continue to dominate the world of music, movies, sports and others.
America’s Hollywood which is the apex movie industry in the world has for decades provided a platform for the best of Nigerian thespians to display their talents and achieve fame and fortune.
For a lot of passionate fans of Hollywood blockbusters, it may come as a shock to them that some of their favourite actors and actresses are actually Nigerians by birth or descent.
Below is a list of top five thespians in Hollywood who have Nigerian blood or origin:
1. Hugo Weaving
Top of the list is Hugo Weaving, an English man who is also a Nigerian by birth. Born in Colonial Nigeria to English parents on 4 April 1960 at the University College Teaching Hospital (UCH) Ibadan Nigeria, Hugo’s parents are both English. His mother Ann Lennard worked as a tour guide, and also a Teacher while his father Wallace Weaving was a Seismologist. He has resided in Australia for the most part of his career. He is the recipient of six Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards (AACTA).
Weaving achieved international recognition through appearances in mainstream Hollywood productions. His most notable film roles include Agent Smith in The Matrix films (1999–2003), Elrond in the beloved sequel, The Lord of the Rings (2001–2003) and The Hobbit (2012–2014) trilogies, and Johann Schmidt / Red Skull in the Marvel Cinematic Universe film Captain America(2011). These were some of the blockbuster films that he played roles treasured by the audience. In addition to his live action appearances, Weaving has had several voice over roles, including in the cartoons, Happy Feet (2006) and Happy Feet Two (2011), and the voice of the notorious villain of the Transformers series Megatron.
2. Toby Onwumere
Toby Onwumere is a Nigerian-American actor, born on February 1, 1990. Onwumere was raised by his parents, alongside two brothers, Dean and Dubem. He has expressed so much love for his family and their support in his decision to follow his dream of acting, despite the fact that they do not reside in the US. He holds a bachelor’s degree in acting from the University of Evansville, in Indiana, and after receiving his degree, he went on to further his education in the field and really hone his acting skills by getting his MFA in performance arts at the University of California San Diego.
Although he is still an upcoming actor in Hollywood, he has made a huge impact on the stage and on television. He has had two major roles in two television series; Fox’s Empire, where he plays the role of Kai, an HIV+ gay reporter, and the Netflix series, Sense8.
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When asked about his gay role in Fox Empire he said: “…. I was excited to take on the role. There was no hesitation at all about it. I’m always looking for more variety and Kai (his name in the movie) was not a stereotype. He is not a character who feels sorry for himself. The fact that he has HIV is a facet of his life; it’s not the totality of it. He still has strength and he still has…pride about himself regardless of him having HIV”.
3. John Adedayo Bamidele Adegboyega
John Boyega as he is professionally known is a British actor and producer.
He first rose to prominence in his native Britain for his role as Moses in the sci-fi comedy film Attack the Block (2011), and his international breakthrough came with his role as Finn in the Star Wars sequel films The Force Awakens (2015), and The Rise of Skywalker (2019).
Boyega was born on the 17th March 1992 in the Camberwell district of London and grew up in Peckham. His parents, Abigail and Samson Adegboyega (a Pentecostal minister), are both of Nigerian descent. He has two older sisters.
In January 2016, Boyega formed his own production company, Upperroom Entertainment Limited. The company co-produced (with Legendary Entertainment) 2018’s Pacific Rim: Uprising, the sequel to the 2013 movie Pacific Rim, in which he played the lead role of Jake Pentecost. In the 2013 movie adaptation of Half of a Yellow Sun, he played the role of Ugwu.
4. Folake Olowofoyeku
Folake was born in Nigeria on October 26, 1983
to Nigerian politician Babatunji Olowofoyeku and Felicia Olowofoyeku. She is the youngest of 20 children. She grew up in Victoria Island in Lagos, Nigeria and also spent time in London. One of her older brothers is a musician and guitarist Toby Foyeh.
Olowofoyeku attended Igbinedion Education Centre, a Montessori boarding school in Benin City. She then transferred to Vivian Fowler Memorial College for Girls in Ikeja, Lagos and then attended Oxbridge Tutorial College.
In 2001 at the age of 18,
Olowofoyeku immigrated to the United States, where she went to live with her sister. She appeared in guest starring roles on television shows that include; How to Get Away with Murder, and Modern Family.
She starred in the 2017 film, Death Race 2050, as Minerva Jefferson. Her blockbuster came in September 2019 in the sitcom: Bob hearts Abishola, about a Nigerian lady who is a cardiac nurse in Detroit. She is also a musician and sound engineer with a diploma in audio engineering from the Institute of Audio Research.
5. Uzoamaka Nwanneka “Uzo” Aduba
Uzo is a Nigerian-American actress. She was born on February 10, 1981, to Nigerian parents in Boston, USA. Uzo is most popular for her role as Suzanne “Crazy Eyes” Warren on the Netflix original series Orange Is the New Black, for which she won an Emmy Award.
She first garnered recognition for her acting in 2003, with her performance in Translations of Xhosa. She is the first actress to win both a drama and comedy Emmy for the same role.
Uzo won a second Primetime Emmy at the 67th Primetime Emmy Awards in 2015, winning the award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series.
There are many more outstanding celebrities with Nigerian roots in Hollywood, all with amazing personalities.
Abbas Muhammad
[email protected]
Mass Communication Department Ahmadu Bello University Zaria.
