21/01/2022

John Okafor Biography & Net Worth: Age, Career, and Facts

John Okafor a.k.a Mr. Ibu is a famous comic actor in the Nigerian movie industry, he has been in the business of putting smiles on people’s faces for over 2 decades now, as a prolific actor in Nigeria we thought it will be cool to give you detailed information about the biography and net worth of John Okafor.

Nollywood is blessed to have raw talents all across, ranging from every ethnicity in Nigeria and this has placed the industry in the top 3 in the world.

We cannot ignore those who made this feat possible for Nollywood and Nigeria at large and this is why Nollywood actors and actresses must be celebrated.

John Okafor is one of those that makes Nollywood entertaining, how on earth will you watch a movie he was featured in and you won’t burst into laughter?

Without further ado let us quickly take you through his profile information before diving into John Okafor biography and net worth in full.

Mr. Ibu Profile

Full Name:	John Ikechukwu Okafor
Nickname:	Mr. Ibu
Date of Birth:	17th, October 1961
Place of Birth:	Enugu State, Nigeria
State of Origin:	Enugu State
Nationality:	Nigerian
Education:	College of Education, Yola & MIT
Wife:	Stella Maris Okafor
Occupation:	Actor, Musician & Comedian

Now that you have seen a little about him we will love you to read the full biography and net worth of Mr. Ibu, his wife, children, family, career, awards, and many more.

Early Profile

John Ikechukwu Okafor was born in Enugu State on the 17th of October, 1961. He is originally from Nkanu West L.G. in Enugu State the South Eastern region of Nigeria.

John Okafor from a family of eight struggles to excel and make a name for himself, his ordeal started when his father died, a heavy storm destroyed his father’s house, and John Okafor together with his other siblings and his mother was forced to become tenants in their hometown.

It was a very disheartening occurrence as it affected his education, in 1974 after his primary school education John Okafor moved to his brothers’ house in Sapele.

While in Sapele John tried his best to raise money so as to further his education, he did menial jobs to feed himself and his family, worked as a hairstylist, and photographer, and even worked in a crate-producing factory.

He tried his best to finish his Secondary school education for which not so long he got admitted to the College of Education, Yola, unfortunately, he had to drop out as there were no funds to sponsor himself.

After being through different jobs John Okafor was able to raise some funds then he enrolled at the Institute of Management and Technology (IMT) in Enugu which gave him the opportunity to stay educated and got his degree in Mass Communication.

Mr. Ibu Love Life; Wife & Family

Life wasn’t fair to Mr. Ibu “John Okafor” as six of his family members died from poison, and he also got a divorce from his first marriage.

In 2015 he got married to his current wife Stella Maris Okafor, who is an actress and also a model, their union was blessed with three children, and when it seems everything is coming back to normal John Okafor lost his first son Emmanuel Okafor.

We got to know that his ex-wife kidnapped his wife and his children of which she demanded ransom after the money was paid they got released after 10 days, a few months later their first son Emmanuel Okafor died due to complications believed to be poison when he got kidnapped.

John Okafor’s wife Stella Maris Okafor has been a very supportive partner to him, likewise his wonderful children.

Mr. Ibu enjoys sports as a hobby and also loves driving, playing draft, watching football, and also cracking expensive jokes.

Career

Before John Okafor started his acting career he has done a lot of jobs, and trades and learned as an apprentice, he worked as a hairstylist, worked in Anambra Broadcasting Service (ABS), worked as a teacher, and also learned Martial Arts “Shotokan Karate” which he practiced for 16 good years and in 1983 got his black belt.

He has the record of being the first instructor who taught Karate in federal government colleges in Nigeria.

As an Igbo man who loves money, John Okafor was able to gather some of his friends, they contributed money and dived into trading, they buy fairly used shoes, medical equipment, shirts, caps, and so on from Niger then come back to Nigeria to sell.

John Okafor’s acting career started while working in the Anambra Broadcasting Service, he started getting gigs for soap operas then he graduated to become a production assistant and this gave him the opportunity to learn film production from different movie producers.

Producers discovered his talent for him because a talent can’t be kept out for long, they discovered the other side of him which is comic, noticed he cracks jokes effortlessly and this was discovered by Alex Ezeamaku the Managing Director of Zalex Production.

In 1997 John Okafor was given a role to play as an imbecile by Alex which he did well, he performed more than what was expected of him then his career fully kickstarted.

He worked with inspiration and advice from top movie directors and actors the likes of Nkem Owoh, Zebrudaya, and many others, now he is a force to reckon with in the Nigerian movie industry, and also as far as comedy is concerned he is a top comic actor.

Being one of the best comic actors in Nigeria John Okafor a.k.a Mr. Ibu was able to work on a set with other veteran actors and actresses, he started producing his own movies too which were done yearly.

Some of the movies produced by John Okafor are (Mr. Ibu, Allegations, Naomi, e.t.c.). Aside from movies produced by him, John Okafor has starred in over 200 movies and still acting today.

He worked with prominent actors and actresses in Nigeria, the likes of Pete Edochie, Monalisa Chinda, Late Sam Loco Efe, Patience Ozokwor, Chinedu Ikedieze, Osita Iheme, and so on.

Filmography – (Movies John Okafor Appeared In)

Below is a comprehensive list of some of the movies John Okafor appeared in, if you need to laugh away your sorrow then here are the numerous lists of Mr. Ibu’s movies.

Agony – 1998
Vuga – 2000
Informant – 2003
Bullet – 2003
Fresh Pain – 2003
Nicodemus – 2003
Police Recruit – 2003
Ngozi: Abeg Marry Us – 2003
Naomi – 2003
Civil War – 2003
Mr. Ibu – 2004
James & John – 2004
Unbreakable – 2004
Mr. Ibu in London – 2004
Dollars from Germany – 2004
Circles of Live – 2005
Joshua – 2005
The Councillor – 2005
9 Wives – 2005
Common Sense – 2005
The Journalist – 2006
Store Keeper – 2006
Brainwash – 2006
Sweet Mama – 2006
The Return of Mama-G – 2006
Fool at 40 – 2006
Over Heat – 2006
Final Surrender – 2006
Men on the Run – 2006
Recharge Card – 2006
Dear Mama – 2006
Four Forty – 2006
Chelsea/Liverpool – 2006
Captain – 2006
Keziah – 2007
Basket Mouth – 2007
Bafana Bafana – 2007
Desperate Search – 2007
How Far – 2007
Toronto Connection – 2007
The Tusk of Life – 2008
Mental Case – 2008
Yahoozee Prophets – 2009
Most Wanted Kidnappers – 2010
Open & Close – 2011
Honeymoon Guys – 2015

Awards & Recognition

The biography of John Okafor and his net worth wouldn’t have been complete without talking about his awards.

In 2014, he won the Best Movie Actor of the Year, an award of excellence by Peace Ambassadors of Nigeria.
In 2016, he won an award from Magic Lens Africa Film Academy.
He also won the “Best Comedian” from the Governor of Enugu state.
He got an award from Multichoice African Magic Viewers Choice Awards.

He has a lot of awards as we have only selected a few. Aside from the awards, he also got deals as a brand ambassador with big Nigerian brands like GoTV, Merrybet, and many more.

Mr. Ibu Net Worth

John Okafor’s net worth is currently estimated at $4.5 million, and his earning streams from movies produced, movies he starred and featured in, and also from his endorsement deals.

Facts About John Okafor

John Okafor got into school during the Biafra War and he saw the ugly part of it, together with his family and loved ones hide in the woods and he partakes in the eating of lizards, rats, and other things just to stay alive. Though was fun to him.

In 1976 his father got poisoned together with other members of his family, and this really affected his education and growing up in his kid days.

He brought Jim Iyke and into the movie industry and also Georgina Onuoha, we also have other actors that came into the limelight through him, John Okafor is a source of inspiration even to the upcoming actors.

He is currently one of the richest actors in Nollywood, ranked in the 4th position.

He is a musician and has released some songs and also featured in some top musician music videos eg Flavor.

Do you enjoy this article on the biography and net worth of John Okafor? If YES then you can encourage us to bring you more by hitting the social media share buttons below. You can also contribute to this article by making use of the comment box below.

Share 💞: