Funke Akindele

Olufunke Ayotunde Akindele (born August 24, 1977) popularly known as Funke Akindele or Jenifa, is a Nigerian filmmaker, actress, director, producer and politician. Akindele starred in the sitcom I Need to Know from 1998 to 2002 and in 2009, she won the Africa Movie Academy Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role. for her role in Jenifa, which brought her into fame. Akindele reprised the role in a 2015 television series adaption titled Jenifa's Diary, for which she was named the Best Actress in a Comedy at the 2016 and 2017 Africa Magic Viewers Choice Awards. Akindele won the same award in 2020 and 2022, making it her fifth win for the Best Actress in a Comedy category. Akindele is the most nominated actress/filmmaker at the AMVCA and currently owns six wins which makes her the actress with most wins. She is the second director to gross over a billion naira at the Nigeria box office and currently the Highest grossing Nigerian Director in Nigerian Box Office with a total Gross of over ₦2.9 billion.

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

Early life and education
Akindele was born on August 24,1977, in Ikorodu, Lagos State, Nigeria. She is a Yoruba woman. She is the second of three children (two girls and one boy). Her mother is a medical doctor while her father is a retired school principal. She attended Grace Children's School, Gbagada, Lagos State. She obtained an Ordinary National Diploma (OND) in Mass Communication from the former Ogun State Polytechnic, now known as Moshood Abiola Polytechnic. She earned a Law degree from the University of Lagos.

Career
Akindele came into the limelight after starring in the popular United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)-sponsored sitcom I Need to Know, which ran from 1998 to 2002. 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 movie Jenifa.

In January 2018, there was a controversy when it was reported that Funke Akindele would get her Hollywood debut in Marvel's Avengers: Infinity War as she was listed as a member of the cast on IMDb. Mainstream Nigerian press reported that Jenifa was set to star in Infinity War as the guard Dora Milaje, citing IMDb. Some weeks later her name was replaced with that of fellow Nigerian actress Genevieve Nnaji, with Funke Akindele's upload shown to have been a hack. In February 2018, it was reported that Senate President and chair of the National Assembly, Dr. Bukola Saraki, had advised Marvel Studios to feature Akindele in Infinity War.

In an interview in July 2016, Funke Akindele stated she was acting less in the Yoruba film industry at that time because of piracy. Akindele plays the lead character in the ongoing hit TV show Jenifa's Diary, alongside Fisayo Ajisola, Falz, Juliana Olayode, and Aderounmu Adejumoke. The show is an adaption of the movie Jenifa. The 2018 comedy film Moms at War stars Funke Akindele and Omoni Oboli. In July 2019, Akindele started a new web series, Aiyetoro Town, a turnover from her popular TV series, Jenifa's Diary. She is the former CEO of Scene One Film Production.

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

Political career
Akindele was nominated as the Lagos deputy governorship candidate under Peoples Democratic Party (Nigeria) in the 2023 elections. In justifying her nomination, Abdul-Azeez Olajide Adediran, popularly known as Jandor, noted that the actress will add more value to his candidacy in the 2023 general elections. Confirming her deputy governorship candidacy on Tuesday, the actress stated that her acting career must be “necessarily put on hold”.

Charity initiative
Akindele established a non-governmental organization known as the Jenifa Foundation, which aims at providing young people with vocational skills.

Endorsements
Akindele has endorsement deals such as her being signed as an Ambassador to Dettol and Irokotv. In 2018, she was signed as a brand ambassador for Keystone Bank. In November 2019, she signed an endorsement deal with Waw Nigeria, a company that manufactures detergent and bar soap.

Personal life
On 26 May 2012, Funke Akindele married Adeola Kehinde Oloyede. The couple divorced in July 2013, citing irreconcilable differences. Funke Akindele married Nigerian rapper JJC Skillz in London in May 2016. Her pregnancy rumours were among the top searched results on Google 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. Funke Akindele gave birth to twin boys in December 2018 and has several step-children.

Controversy
In April 2020, Akindele was arrested along with JJC Skillz, her husband at that time and charged for having a birthday party for her husband during a mandated lockdown to tackle coronavirus. She later appeared in a Nigeria Centre for Disease Control video to raise awareness about coronavirus. The actress and her husband were sentenced to a 14-day community service after pleading guilty to violating the lockdown order.

Record holdings
In 2024, Her movie A Tribe Called Judah became the highest grossing Nigerian movie of all time, breaking the record of her movie Battle on Buka Street.

Akindele has the most wins at award shows like AMVCA and Nigeria Entertainment Awards.

She is the producer and director of the three highest grossing Nollywood movies of all time, A Tribe Called Judah, Battle on Buka Street and Omo Ghetto: The Saga.