Funke Akindele
Funke Akindele at the 2020Africa Magic Viewers Choice Awards
Born	Akindele Olufunke Ayotunde (1977-08-24)24 August 1977 (age 47)[1] Lagos State,Nigeria
Nationality	Nigerian
Other names	Jenifa
Alma mater	Moshood Abiola Polytechnic University of Lagos
Occupations	Actress film producer director
Years active	1998–present
Political party	PDP

Olufunke Ayotunde Akindele// ^ⓘ (born August 24, 1977)^[2][3] popularly known asFunke Akindele orJenifa,^[4] is aNigerian filmmaker, actress,^[5] director, producer,politician and realtor.^[6][7][8] Akindele starred in thesitcomI Need to Know from 1998 to 2002^[9] and in 2009, she won theAfrica Movie Academy Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role,^[10] for her role inJenifa,^[11] which brought her to fame. Akindele reprised the role in 2011 sequelThe Return of Jenifa and 2015soft reboot television series titledJenifa's Diary,^[12] for which she was named the Best Actress in a Comedy at the 2016 and 2017Africa Magic Viewers Choice Awards.^[13] Akindele won the same award in 2020 and 2022, making it her fifth win for the Best Actress in aComedy category. Akindele is the most nominated actress/filmmaker at theAMVCA and holds the record for most wins for an actress with six.^[14] She is the second director to gross over a billion naira at box office and is currently the Highest-Grossing Director in Nigerian Box Office with a total gross of over ₦4.7 billion.^[15]

In 2022, she was nominated by thePeople's Democratic Party gubernatorial candidate,Abdul-Azeez Olajide Adediran, as the running mate for the 2023 Lagos state governorship election.^[16][17]

During theWorld AIDS Day commemoration in December 2024, theJoint United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS) appointed her as the National Goodwill Ambassador for Nigeria.^[18][19] Her role will be key in driving positive impact and progress in promotion of HIV prevention across Nigeria.^[20]

Akindele was born on August 24, 1977, inIkorodu,Lagos State,Nigeria.^[21] She isa Yoruba woman. She is the second of three children (two girls and one boy). Her mother was a medical doctor while her father was a retired school principal.^[4][22] She attended Grace Children's School, Gbagada,Lagos State. She obtained an Ordinary National Diploma (OND) inMass Communication (Masscom) from the formerOgun State Polytechnic, now known asMoshood Abiola Polytechnic. She earned a Law degree from theUniversity of Lagos.^[23]

Akindele came into the limelight after starring in the popularUnited Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)-sponsored sitcomI Need to Know, which ran from 1998 to 2002.^[24] Funke Akindele played Bisi, a curious but highly intelligent secondary school student. Funke Akindele's big break came in 2008 when she appeared in the movieJenifa.^[25][26]

In 2010, she starred ingangsters two-parter filmOmo Ghetto that became acult-classic with massive influence onYorubapop-culture at the time. She has since gone on to produce and star in successful Yoruba films, establishing her status as an undisputed household name in the region

In 2013, Akindele ventured fully into what is known as the English part of the industry, amassing fans in the eastern part of the country and throughout the entire nation.

In an interview in July 2016, Funke Akindele stated she was acting less in theYoruba film industry at that time because of piracy.^[13] Akindele played the lead character in the TV showJenifa's Diary, alongsideFisayo Ajisola,Falz,Juliana Olayode, andAderounmu Adejumoke. The show was asoft reboot of the movieJenifa.^[12] The 2018 comedy filmMoms at War starred Funke Akindele andOmoni Oboli. In July 2019, Akindele started a new web series,Aiyetoro Town,^[27] aspin-offfrom her popular TV series,Jenifa's Diary.^[28] She was the formerCEO of Scene One Film Production.^[29]

She made her cinematic directorial debut in the 2019 political drama film,Your Excellency.^[30]

AlongsideDaniel K. Daniel and Blessing Egbe, Akindele was invited to join the 2022 membership of theAcademy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences popularly known as theOscars as voting member.

Funke Akindele is often times compared to American actress,Taraji P. Henson. This comparison recently stirred up reactions after Nigerian content creator and actor, Enioluwa Adeoluwa spoke against the comparisons between both actresses.^[31]

Akindele was nominated as theLagos deputy governorship candidate underPeoples Democratic Party (Nigeria) in the 2023 elections.^[32] Justifying her nomination,Abdul-Azeez Olajide Adediran monikered "Jandor", noted that the actress added more value to his candidacy in the 2023 general elections.^[33] Confirming her deputy governorship candidacy, the actress stated that her acting career must be “necessarily put on hold”.^[34][35]

Akindele established anon-governmental organization known as the Jenifa Foundation, which aims at providing young people with vocational skills.^[36][37]

Akindele has endorsement deals. These include being a signed Ambassador toDettol andIrokotv.^[38][39] In 2018, she was signed as a brand ambassador forKeystone Bank.^[40] InNovember 2019, she signed an endorsement deal with WAW Nigeria, a company that manufactures washing detergent and bar soap.^[41]

On 26 May 2012, Funke Akindele married Adeola Kehinde Oloyede.^[42][43] The couple divorced in July 2013, citing irreconcilable differences.^[44] Funke Akindele married Nigerian rapperJJC Skillz in London in May 2016.^[45] Her pregnancy rumours were among the top searched results onGoogle search engine in August 2017.JJC Skillz announced the end of the union between him and the popular actress which lasted six years via his official Instagram handle on June 30, 2022.^[46] Funke Akindele gave birth to twin boys in December 2018 and has several step-children.^[47][48][49]

In April 2020, Akindele was arrested along withJJC Skillz, her husband at that time and charged for having a birthday party for her husband during a mandated lockdown to curb the spread of thecoronavirus.^[50] She later appeared in aNigeria Centre for Disease Control video to raise awareness about the virus^[51] The actress and her husband were sentenced to a 14-day community service after pleading guilty to violating the lockdown order.^[52][53]

In 2025, Her movieEverybody Loves Jenifa became thehighest grossing Nigerian movie of all time, breaking the record of her movieA Tribe Called Judah.^[54]

Akindele has the most wins at award shows likeAMVCA andNigeria Entertainment Awards.

She is the producer and director of the four highest grossing Nollywood movies of all time;Everybody Loves Jenifa,A Tribe Called Judah,^[54]Battle on Buka Street andOmo Ghetto: The Saga.

• List of Yoruba people
• List of Nigerian actresses

• Funke Akindele atIMDb
• Funke Akindele atTwitter

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• Best Actress Africa Movie Academy Award winners
• 1977 births
• Actresses from Lagos State
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• University of Lagos alumni
• 21st-century Nigerian actresses
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• Moshood Abiola Polytechnic alumni
• Nigerian film producers
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• Nigerian actor-politicians
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