Yes, Father’s Day is long gone, but this will not make us stop giving our fathers their well-deserved flowers from time to time. If you have followed Nollywood over the years, you already know that there are certain actors who are known to kill the role of a father anytime they are called upon because they definitely do a good and believable job.
These movie characters have not just raised the not-so-high bar for upcoming actors who will eventually play the role, but they have also shown in real life that they can be amazing fathers as well. Let’s praise a good dad today with our list of Best Nollywood Fathers of All Time.
1. Pete Edochie (Lionheart):
Nollywood heavyweight, Genevieve Nnaji really unleashed greatness on the industry when she produced “LionHeart” and featured Pete Edochie as her dad in the movie. While Pete Edochie has always be known to play the role of a no-nonsense village king who will drop brain-tasking proverbs from time to time in every scene, “Lionheart” showed us another side to him, a soft one.
Viewers loved every minute of Pete Edochie playing a good and supportive father and the particular scene where he told Genevieve how much he appreciates, loves and respects her value to his company is definitely class.
2. Richard Mofe Damijo (Diamond Ring):
Everybody’s favourite zaddy, Richard Mofe Damijo (RMD) played the role of a father in the Nollywood classic, “Diamond Ring” and the streets will not forget how he killed that role. RMD was the dad to Teju Babyface, who stole a diamond ring from a dead Liz Benson covered in Calamine Lotion, so he had to do what real fathers do, save his child in a time of distress.
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To make that happen, RMD actually went as far as transporting a dead body and he even got hit in the balls by some random girl. If this is not genuine fatherly love for his child, I honestly do not know what is.
3. Odogwu Michael Nonso (Just The Two Of Us):
“Just The Two Of Us” was not a movie, it was actually a series, but it doesn’t change the fact that Odogwu Michael Nonso played the role of a father in it and he was damn good at it. Nonso actually raised his daughter by himself after her mum leaves in this film, and he was patient enough to teach his baby girl all she needed to know about life.
This, however, did not stop his daughter from being mischievous once in a while but their relationship was so much fun to watch whenever the TV show was on.
3. Olu Jacobs (Private Sin):
In this movie, Olu Jacobs suspected that his son (RMD) was enduring an unhappy marriage with Genevieve Nnaji, so like the good father that he is, he went the extra mile to scatter that union. To make his son opt out of the marriage with a manipulative wife, Olu Jacobs thought hard to come out with a great plan that also helped him meet and fall in love with a woman, Stephanie Okereke.
The plot was all over the place, but the sincere intention of a father to come through for his suffering son made all the difference.
4. Pete Edochie (My Love):
I cannot believe that at some point in time, most movie lovers felt Pete Edochie was extremely wicked to stop his daughters from marrying poor men in movies, but how wrong were we? Our naive selves felt love should always conquer everything, including generational poverty, but now we know better.
With dollar rates and the rising cost of living a decent life in Lagos, Nigeria, we see where Pete was coming from and we respect his wishes. The movie “My Love,” stars Ramsey Noah and Chiege Alisigwe, and it showed the legend doing the needful to secure a bright future for his dear daughter.
5. Kunle Bamtefa (Fuji House of Commotion):
This man is the father of nations, and the character he played on once-popular TV show, “Fuji House of Commotion” is proof. Mr Kunle married like 4 wives and he somehow managed to have what appeared to be more kids than he can handle, even if he made it work eventually.
Bamtefa was definitely a father that did everything possible to come through for his kids anytime he was called upon, and you will agree with me that this is a characteristic most Nigerian fathers are lacking today. If only they can learn just that from the actor, and avoid imitating how he couldn’t remember the names of his own kids.
6. Nobert Young (Family Circle and Edge of Paradise):
Nobert Young was a Television guru back in the day and he still is nowadays. On these 2 top TV shows, “Family Circle” and “Edge of Paradise,” Young played a compassionate and loving father who maintained an open relationship with all his children.
His role was more Phil Dunphy than your average Nigerian father because he was fun, lively and open with his offspring. However, this did not stop him from being strict whenever it became the only language his kids understood.
7. Amaechi Muonagor (For Better or Worse):
In this movie, Amaechi Muonagor played a loving and caring father to the worst kid of all time, Genevieve Nnaji. Genny was involved in all kinds of evil deeds that led to her drug problem and she even got deported back to Nigeria eventually after travelling out.
However, despite all of these bad vibes from his own child, Amaechi Muonagor stuck by his daughter through thick and thin. The fatherly trait he displayed in the movie was extremely rare and viewers definitely felt bad for him at some point.
How Nigeria Has Celebrated The Legendary Pete Edochie:
You will know your effort and hard work in your industry have been recognized when the president of the country hails you specially for a job well done. This is the case with veteran actor, scriptwriter and movie producer, Pete Edochie who recently got praised by President Muhammadu Buhari for his several brilliant and inspiring roles in the Nollywood industry over the years.
He recently had his say via a statement by his media adviser, Femi Adesina, and it was his own way of congratulating the legend on his 75th birthday. According to Buhari, Pete Edochie deserves to be acknowledged for living and working tirelessly in several parts of the nation and the world to make a name for himself.
Buhari added that Edochie’s role in the founding and rise of Nollywood as one of the biggest entertainment industries in the world is very commendable, especially with the way he has also ushered in the newer generation of talents into the industry, like his talented son, Yul Edochie.
Another political leader who could not help but appreciate the Nollywood veteran is Abia State Governor, Okezie Ikpeazu. He recently described Pete Edochie as a living legend and an icon in the Nigerian film industry.
According to him, the actor definitely used the Nollywood platform to seal his place as one of Nigeria’s greatest movie stars ever, as he deserves a lot of respect for using the industry as a powerful voice of social engineering, societal reorientation and cultural revival.
He added that Pete Edochie’s role in “Things Fall Apart,” was played perfectly on screen that it led the actor to walk himself into mainstream Nollywood without having to do too much. Ikpeazu insisted that the veteran is proof that it is very possible to shine in any given profession via talent, hard work, commitment and consistent tenacity.
Other Celebrities Who Have Celebrated Pete Edochie:
Fellow Nollywood actors have not been left out of the group of people giving Pete Edochie his flowers while he can still collect them, and Belinda Effah has also been seen saying the Nollywood legend is a gift to the industry and he is worthy of any praise he gets.
Belinda said she grew up watching him on screen and she absolutely respects him for his amazing presence on set and his commendable command of words while acting. According to her, she has worked with Edochie once and he was such a father figure to every other actor during the project they both worked on. She then wished him long life and prosperity, while adding that he has failed to look his advanced age for so many years.
Another actress, Ebere Nwizu believes Pete Edochie is a Nollywood maestro who makes it easy to be a celebrity, especially with how he has managed to stay consistent in our ever-challenging movie industry. According to her, she once had the chance to work with Pete Edochie on set, and she still considers it an invaluable opportunity to this day.
Conclusion:
Pete Edochie gained stardom in the 80s as Okonkwo in the screen adaptation of Chinua Achebe’s “Things Fall Apart,” and it was on this set that his amazing performance made the world sit up and admire Africa’s growing movie industry.
