Nollywood is mourning again. Veteran actor Diewait Ikpechukwu, who was best known for playing kings, traditional rulers and elders on screen, has died at the age of 71 after a long illness.
Premium Times and Naija News both reported that he died on Thursday, 5 November 2026. Family sources confirmed the death, and the National President of the Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN), Abubakar Yakubu, announced it on Instagram on Friday.
Guild leads tributes
In his post, the AGN president called the actor a legend. He wrote: “Another legend bows out!” His message was shared widely by colleagues and fans who remembered Ikpechukwu’s calm, commanding screen presence.
Neither the family nor the guild has named the illness. Premium Times said details of his condition and funeral plans had not been made public when it filed its report.
From the football pitch to the film set
Few people know that Ikpechukwu’s first love was football. In the 1970s he was a right-winger and was invited to the Green Eagles camp, as the national team was then called. He played for Blue Diamonds of Nsukka and Kaduna Rocks, and captained the Kaduna State Polytechnic team, Premium Times reported. He later worked as a team manager, including at Vasco da Gama in Enugu, and as a radio sports commentator.
He was born on 23 August 1955, according to Naija News. He attended Comprehensive High School, Awo-Omamma, in Imo State, earned an HND in Marketing from Kaduna State Polytechnic and did his national service at Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria. He later obtained a postgraduate diploma in Marketing from Enugu State University of Science and Technology.
For many years he worked at the old national telephone company, NITEL, and rose to a senior management position before he retired.
A career built on royal roles
Ikpechukwu first appeared on television at NTA Enugu, including on the drama “Second Chance”. His film debut came in 1998 in “Evil Men”, directed by the late Chico Ejiro, where he played a traditional ruler alongside Pete Edochie, Alex Usifo and Liz Benson.
That role set the pattern for a career of more than 25 years. Directors often cast him as a king or a respected elder. Premium Times lists his credits as including “The August Meeting”, “The Guilty”, “Royal Palace”, “Across the River”, “Python King”, “Emecheta”, “Nwando”, “The Living Deity” and “African Gods”. In 2022 he played King Obumneme in “Ìjé Love”.
He was also the pioneer chairman of the AGN’s Enugu State chapter, where he organised seminars for young people hoping to become actors. He also worked as a master of ceremonies at events.
A difficult season for Nollywood
His death adds to a run of losses for the Nigerian film industry, which has said goodbye to several older actors in recent months. Many of them helped build Nollywood in the late 1990s and early 2000s, when home videos made Nigerian films popular across Africa.
What happens next
The family is expected to announce burial arrangements in the coming days. The AGN usually organises tributes and a night of honour for senior members, and colleagues in Enugu, where he helped set up the guild’s chapter, are likely to play a major role.
Sources: Premium Times, Naija News, Daily Post.
