Back to Africa Check

No, Nigeria Nollywood actor Ngozi Ezeonu not dead

IN SHORT: Several posts on Facebook have claimed that the popular Nigerian actor Ngozi Ezeonu is dead. But this is false.

Posts about the death of popular Nigerian actor Ngozi Ezeonu arecirculating on social media in January 2024. 

Ezeonu is a former journalist who started acting in Nollywood in 1994 and has appeared in over 300 movies.

The Nigerian film industry is popularly known as Nollywood.

One Facebook post reads: “BREAKING! Actress Ngozi Ezeonu is reportedly dead. Very tearfully indeed although no Queen reigns forever. She has showcased wonders in the business of Movies, having taken leads and participations in over 50 movies in the Nollywood industry. Rest In Peace Mummy-General.”

In the comment section, some people doubted the authenticity of the post. But we found similar posts on Facebook here, here, here and here

So has Ezeonu passed away? We checked.

EzeonuDead_False

Ngozi Ezeonu not dead

The actor posted an image to Instagram in the first week of January 2024 with the caption “A RARE GEM IS GONE” and this stirred the rumour about her death. She has since deleted the post. 

Ngozi took to her verified Instagram page to debunk the rumour.

In the video, she said: “I don’t see any reason why my post should be misunderstood. I lost a very close friend of mine and I posted a half burnt candle. They added my picture on that candle and everybody started posting that I died already … For the people who wish me well, I am alive and healthy.”

Republish our content for free

We believe that everyone needs the facts.

You can republish the text of this article free of charge, both online and in print. However, we ask that you pay attention to these simple guidelines. In a nutshell:

1. Do not include images, as in most cases we do not own the copyright.

2. Please do not edit the article.

3. Make sure you credit "Africa Check" in the byline and don't forget to mention that the article was originally published on africacheck.org.

For publishers: what to do if your post is rated false

A fact-checker has rated your Facebook or Instagram post as “false”, “altered”, “partly false” or “missing context”. This could have serious consequences. What do you do?

Click on our guide for the steps you should follow.

Publishers guide

Africa Check teams up with Facebook

Africa Check is a partner in Meta's third-party fact-checking programme to help stop the spread of false information on social media.

The content we rate as “false” will be downgraded on Facebook and Instagram. This means fewer people will see it.

You can also help identify false information on Facebook. This guide explains how.

Add new comment

Restricted HTML

  • Allowed HTML tags: <a href hreflang> <em> <strong> <cite> <blockquote cite> <code> <ul type> <ol start type> <li> <dl> <dt> <dd> <h2 id> <h3 id> <h4 id> <h5 id> <h6 id>
  • Lines and paragraphs break automatically.
  • Web page addresses and email addresses turn into links automatically.
limit: 600 characters

Want to keep reading our fact-checks?

We will never charge you for verified, reliable information. Help us keep it that way by supporting our work.

Become a newsletter subscriber

Support independent fact-checking in Africa.