Entertainment
CONFIRMED: Actor Jnr Pope drowns hours after he posted video on a boat
The actor talked about the risks actors put themselves through to ensure they deliver entertainment to the audience.
Jnr Pope was 39 years old [Instagram/@jnrpope]
Nollywood actor Junior Pope Odonwodo, popularly known as Jnr Pope, has died after drowning in a boat accident.
Jnr Pope died on a movie set in Asaba, the Delta State capital, on the afternoon of Wednesday, April 10, 2024.
Confusion had trailed his status Wednesday night after Emeka Rollas, the national president of the Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN), announced that the actor was responding to medical treatment.
“What God cannot do does not exist. Junior Pope is alive. He is taking treatment in the hospital,” Rollassaidin a later deleted post on Instagram.
However, the AGN president confirmed Pope’s passing in a new post on Thursday morning. “It’s so so sad that our joy was shortlived,” he said.
Clearing up the confusion triggered by his initial post, Rollas clarified, “My first post was out of excitement when we noticed his tingling fingers. Two notable hospitals tried their best to revive him but to no avail. God knows the best. We finally lost him.”
The deceased actor was married and blessed with three kids.
Rollas also confirmed that the corpse of one Mr Friday had also been identified, while three other victims of the boat accident, including a makeup artist and a sound guy, are still missing.
The incident happened a few hours after Pope shared a video of himself on his Instagram page, riding a wooden boat without a life jacket, apparently for a scene in the movie he was acting in.
“See me lamenting. The risk we take to entertain you. Crossing river 9ja yesterday with no life jacket. Na wahoooooo. Who does that?” Jnr Pope captioned the video.
Jnr Pope’s death comes less than a week after the passing of Aderounmu Adejumoke, the actress who rose to fame for her role as Esther in the popular Funke Akindele series, Jenifa’s Diary.
This comes after Nollywood suffered a string of losses in March, with three prominent actors losing their lives.
On March 1, Yoruba actor, Tolani Quadri Oyebamiji, popularly known as Sisi Quadri, died after a brief illness.
The incident was followed by the passing of John ‘Mr Ibu’ Okafor the following day, while another veteran thespian, Amaechi Muonagor, died on March 24. The two died after a protracted battle with illnesses.
Entertainment
President Tinubu, Other Political Leaders Watch MKO Documentary
The documentary, MKO, directed by Nigerian-American filmmaker Ose Oyamendan, chronicles the life, political journey and legacy of the late Chief Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola, with particular focus on the June 12, 1993 presidential election, its annulment, subsequent detention and the pro-democracy struggle that followed.
President Bola Tinubu on Thursday attended the official launch and premiere of MKO at the Wole Soyinka Centre for Culture and the Creative Arts in Lagos, ahead of the film’s nationwide cinema release from October 2.
Chief MKO Abiola occupies a prominent place in Nigeria’s democratic history as the winner of the June 12, 1993 presidential election, which was annulled by the then military government.
The President was joined at the Wole Soyinka Centre for Culture and the Creative Arts in Lagos by First Lady Senator Oluremi Tinubu, Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun and Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq.
Others present included Deputy Senate President Jibrin Barau, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives Benjamin Kalu, Chief of Staff to the President Femi Gbajabiamila, Minister of Art, Culture, Tourism and the Creative Economy Hannatu Musawa, former Ogun State Governor Segun Osoba and other dignitaries.
The documentary, MKO, directed by Nigerian-American filmmaker Ose Oyamendan, chronicles the life, political journey and legacy of the late Chief Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola, with particular focus on the June 12, 1993 presidential election, its annulment, subsequent detention and the pro-democracy struggle that followed.
The film, which had its international premiere at the Sheffield International Documentary Festival in the United Kingdom in June 2026, features archival materials and first-hand accounts from key personalities connected to the period.
Entertainment
Nollywood actor Cjay Nwokafor dies
Cjay, who began his acting career in 2021, featured in several Nollywood productions, including Larry Cold, Mum Overnight and A Day to My Wedding.
•Nollywood actor Cjay Nwokafor
The death of Nollywood actor Chijioke “Cjay” Nwokafor has been announced.
Cjay, an indigene of Anambra, who began his acting career in 2021, featured in several Nollywood productions, including Larry Cold, Mum Overnight and A Day to My Wedding.
His colleague, actress Nkechi Blessing, announced his death on Instagram on Wednesday, sharing videos of herself with the late actor.
Blessing did not disclose the cause of his death but said she had cancelled the release of her movie, Egusi Ogbono, in his honour. Cjay featured in the film.
The actress had initially scheduled the movie for release at 5pm on Wednesday but withdrew it after a hospital confirmed the actor’s death.
Blessing said she spoke with Cjay at about 8am on Wednesday, only to receive news of his death a few hours later.
“Cjay Nwoke Oma, so this is really the end? Omo we had plans. I spoke to you at 8 a.m. today and a few hours later you are no more with us.
Entertainment
WhatsApp introduces parental controls for teens
The new controls allow parents to manage how their teens use Channels, whose Status updates they can see and who can view their own Status updates.
WhatsApp has introduced new parental controls that allow parents to manage how their teenagers use the messaging platform while keeping their private conversations protected.
The platform announced the controls in a blog post on Wednesday, saying parents and teens can set them up together to determine the WhatsApp experience that best suits their family.
Parents can choose privacy settings for their teens, including who can see their profile photo and who can add them to groups.
If a teenager wants to change some of the settings, parental approval through a parent-set PIN will be required.
Parents will also receive notifications when their teen joins or leaves a group, or when a group the teen belongs to grows significantly.
The new controls allow parents to manage how their teens use Channels, whose Status updates they can see and who can view their own Status updates.
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