11th April, 2024
By Taiwo Okanlawon
Famous Nollywood actor, Pope Obumneme Odonwodo, popularly known as Junior Pope, drowned on Wednesday during a movie shoot.
Junior Pope and three of his colleagues died when their boat capsized on the Anam River in Anambra State while returning from a film location.
The President of the Actors Guild of Nigeria, Emeka Rollas, confirmed his death on Thursday and stated that three other corpses are yet to be found.
Following his death, AGN declared April 11 ‘No shooting day.’ The Guild also placed an indefinite ban on shooting in riverine areas and boat riding, and bared actors from acting in any movie to be produced by Adanma Luke, the producer of the ill-fated movie, ‘The Other Side Of Life.’
Below some things to know about Junior Pope.
1. Junior Pope was born on May 7, 1984, in Cameroon but hails from Ukehe in Enugu State.
2. The actor graduated from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Enugu State with a degree in Accounting.
3. He was a Nigerian model and actor known for acting criminal, villain, armed robber, militant and hitman roles.
4. He tied the knot with his wife, Jennifer Awele in 2014 and their marriage is blessed with three children.
5. Junior Pope began his acting career in 2006 and has acted in more than 150 Nollywood movies including ‘Bachelor Eve’, ‘Vengeance of Bullet’, ‘Bitter Generation’, ‘The Generals’, ‘Wrong Initiation’, ‘The Cat’, ‘Nkwocha’, ‘Secret Adventure’, among others.