Veteran Nigerian actor and film executive Oludotun Baiyewu Jacobs, popularly known as Olu Jacobs, has died at the age of 84.<\/p>\n
Jacobs died on Wednesday, September 16, 2026, according to a family announcement\u00a0 shared on social media by his son, Olusoji Jacobs. His wife, veteran actress Joke Silva, also confirmed the death.<\/p>\n
In a statement\u00a0announcing his passing, the family described\u00a0Jacobs as \u201cThe\u00a0Lion of Lufodo\u201d and expressed gratitude\u00a0for his life, while appealing to\u00a0bloggers and social\u00a0media influencers to\u00a0respect the family’s\u00a0privacy.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is with\u00a0gratitude to God\u00a0for a life\u00a0well lived and\u00a0fought, that we\u00a0announce the passing\u00a0of our dear\u00a0husband, father, grandfather\u00a0and uncle. The\u00a0Lion of Lufodo,\u201d the family said.<\/p>\n
The statement identified\u00a0him as\u00a0Oludotun Baiyewu Jacobs\u00a0(MFR), 11\/07\/1942 \u2013 16\/09\/2026, and asked the\u00a0public to allow\u00a0the family privacy\u00a0during the mourning\u00a0period.<\/p>\n
From British Television\u00a0to Nollywood<\/strong><\/p>\n Born on July 11, 1942, Jacobs developed an interest in acting while growing up and later travelled to Britain, where he trained at the Royal Academy of\u00a0 Dramatic Art (RADA) in London. His\u00a0 professional career included theatre, television and film work in Britain before he established himself as a major figure in Nigeria’s entertainment industry.<\/p>\n During his years\u00a0in Britain, Jacobs\u00a0 appeared in a\u00a0number of television\u00a0 productions, including\u00a0The Goodies,\u00a0Till Death Us\u00a0Do Part,\u00a0Angels,\u00a0The Professionals\u00a0and\u00a0The Tomorrow People. He also featured\u00a0in international films\u00a0including\u00a0The Dogs of\u00a0War,\u00a0 Pirates\u00a0and\u00a0Baby: Secret of\u00a0the Lost Legend.<\/p>\n His return to\u00a0Nigeria marked the\u00a0beginning of another\u00a0significant chapter in\u00a0his career. Jacobs\u00a0became one of\u00a0the prominent actors\u00a0associated with the\u00a0development of Nigeria’s\u00a0modern film industry, appearing in more\u00a0than 100 Nigerian\u00a0productions. His deep\u00a0voice, commanding screen\u00a0presence and ability\u00a0to portray authority\u00a0figures made him\u00a0a familiar presence\u00a0across generations of\u00a0Nigerian audiences.<\/p>\n A Decorated Career<\/strong><\/p>\n Jacobs’ career earned him several major honours.<\/p>\n In 2007, he\u00a0won the Africa\u00a0Movie Academy Award\u00a0for Best Actor\u00a0in a Leading\u00a0Role for his\u00a0performance in\u00a0Dancing Heart. Six years later, he received the\u00a0Industry Merit Award\u00a0for outstanding achievement\u00a0in acting at\u00a0the Africa Magic\u00a0Viewers’ Choice Awards.<\/p>\n In 2016, Jacobs\u00a0and Joke Silva\u00a0were among the\u00a0recipients of the\u00a0African Movie Academy\u00a0Awards’ Lifetime Achievement\u00a0 Award, recognising their\u00a0contributions to African\u00a0cinema.<\/p>\n The Federal Government\u00a0also honoured Jacobs\u00a0in 2011 with\u00a0the national award\u00a0of Member of\u00a0the Order of\u00a0the Federal Republic\u00a0(MFR).<\/p>\n Building Beyond Acting<\/strong><\/p>\n Jacobs’ contribution to the Nigerian entertainment industry extended beyond his work in front of the camera.<\/p>\n Together with Silva, he co-founded the Lufodo Group, which encompasses film and theatre production, distribution and the Lufodo Academy of Performing Arts. The academy was established to provide professional training\u00a0 in the performing arts and help develop a new generation of creative practitioners.<\/p>\n The Lufodo Group’s\u00a0official records identify\u00a0Jacobs as a\u00a0co-founder and\u00a0describe a career\u00a0spanning stage, film\u00a0and radio, including\u00a0work with major\u00a0international organisations\u00a0such as the\u00a0BBC, National Theatre\u00a0and Royal Shakespeare\u00a0Company.<\/p>\n Final Years and Repeated Death Rumours<\/strong><\/p>\n Jacobs’ later years were marked by declining public appearances. Silva had previously spoken\u00a0 publicly about her husband’s health challenges, including dementia, while the family repeatedly pushed back against false reports of his death.<\/p>\n In 2021, 2022\u00a0and again in\u00a02024, reports circulating\u00a0on social media\u00a0claimed that Jacobs\u00a0had died. On\u00a0each occasion, his\u00a0family or people\u00a0close to him\u00a0 dismissed the reports. In 2024, Silva\u00a0said her husband\u00a0was alive and\u00a0well, while the\u00a0Actors Guild of\u00a0Nigeria and other\u00a0 associates also confirmed\u00a0that he was\u00a0alive.<\/p>\n The announcement on Wednesday,\u00a0 however, was made by the family and gives September 16, 2026 as the date of his death.<\/p>\n Jacobs had celebrated\u00a0his 84th\u00a0birthday on July\u00a011, 2026, just\u00a0over two months\u00a0before his death.<\/p>\n Olu Jacobs is\u00a0survived by his\u00a0wife, Joke Silva, and their sons, Olusoji and Olugbenga\u00a0Jacobs.<\/p>\n His death brings\u00a0to a close\u00a0a career that\u00a0stretched across British\u00a0theatre and television, international cinema and\u00a0Nigeria’s film industry. For generations of\u00a0Nigerian audiences, Jacobs\u00a0was a\u00a0defining presence on\u00a0stage and screen, while his work\u00a0with Lufodo extended\u00a0his influence into\u00a0production and the\u00a0training of performers.<\/p>\n The family has\u00a0yet to announce\u00a0 funeral\u00a0 arrangements and has\u00a0asked the public\u00a0to respect its\u00a0privacy as it\u00a0mourns.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Veteran Nigerian actor and film executive Oludotun Baiyewu Jacobs, popularly known as Olu Jacobs, has died at the age of 84. Jacobs died on Wednesday, September 16, 2026, according to a family announcement\u00a0 shared on social media by his son, Olusoji Jacobs. His wife, veteran actress Joke Silva, also confirmed the death. In a statement\u00a0announcing […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":100244,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5775,7,5781],"tags":[512,4948,2340,8697],"class_list":["post-100243","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","category-news","category-obituary","tag-death","tag-jacobs","tag-joke","tag-lufodo"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100243","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=100243"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100243\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":100252,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100243\/revisions\/100252"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/100244"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=100243"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=100243"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=100243"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}