Nollywood Actor Odira Nwobu Dies Aged 43 in South Africa

Nigerian actor, content creator and influencer Odira Nwobu has died in South Africa at the age of 43, his lawyer and the Actors’ Guild of Nigeria have confirmed. The news has shocked fans and colleagues across Nigeria and beyond.

According to the actor’s legal representative, Chukwujiekwu Chukwudi, emergency services were called to a hotel in Benoni, near Johannesburg, after Nwobu was found alone in his room “gasping for breath.” Paramedics attempted to revive him using a defibrillator, but he died at the scene before he could be taken to hospital. A coroner’s report is expected to determine the official cause of death.

Nwobu was known for his comedic persona, youthful “babyface,” and appeared in more than 60 films during his career. Born in 1982 in Enugu State, Nigeria, his first professional role came straight out of secondary school in the film Joseph the Dreamer. Later in his career, feeling typecast, he turned to social-media content creation and amassed hundreds of thousands of followers on platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube.

At the time of his death, Nwobu was reportedly visiting South Africa with a group of social media influencers to promote a Nigerian-owned real-estate company. The trip was organised by a firm for which his lawyer also serves as legal adviser. The Actors’ Guild of Nigeria said the group was “shocked” while deciding how to break the news to his family.

Just months earlier, in July, Nwobu had survived a road accident an incident that had sparked rumours about his death at the time.

Nwobu was not married and is not known to have had any children, according to available public records. As grief pours in from fans and industry colleagues, many are awaiting the coroner’s findings, while tributes highlight Nwobu’s talent and the void his sudden death leaves in Nollywood and online communities alike.