Jude Akuwudike

Jude Akuwudike
Born	Jude Akuwudike 1965 (age 59–60) Nigeria
Nationality	Nigerian
Alma mater	Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
Occupation	Actor
Awards	2008 Red Rock Film Festival - Grand Jury Prize

Jude Akuwudike (born 1965) is a Nigerian actor. He has mostly worked in the United Kingdom, on screen and stage. ^[1]

He has appeared in productions of the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal National Theatre.

Early life

Akuwudike trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art

Born in Nigeria, West Africa, ^[2] Akuwudike moved to Britain and was educated at St Augustine's College in Westgate-on-Sea, Kent, an independent Roman Catholic boarding school. In 1985, he began to train for an acting career at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, graduating in 1987. ^[3]

Career

In 1988, Akuwudike played Captain Watkin Tench in Our Country's Good at the Royal Court Theatre. ^[4] His first film appearance was in the same year, as a priest in A World Apart . ^[5] An early leading role came in 1989 in the play The Fatherland by Murray Watts, at the Bush Theatre at Riverside, ^[6] and his first significant part on television was as Sergeant Gummer in the drama serial Virtual Murder (1991). ^[7]

Throughout his career, Akuwudike has worked mainly on stage, including appearing in several productions for the National Theatre, notably Not About Nightingales , Moon on a Rainbow Shawl , and Ion ^{[ citation needed ]}. He has also appeared for the Royal Shakespeare Company, as well as working on Broadway. He has also had many roles in film and television and is a voice actor. ^[8]

In 1998, in the first British production of Not About Nightingales by Tennessee Williams, directed by Trevor Nunn at the National Theatre, Akuwudike originated the part of "the Queen", a gay prisoner. ^[9] In 2002 he played the black pimp in a Royal National Theatre production of Edmond , with Kenneth Branagh in the title role. ^[10]

From February to May 2011, Akuwudike was Abel Magwitch in an English Touring Theatre production of Great Expectations (adapted by Tanika Gupta), with Lynn Farleigh as Miss Havisham. ^{[11] [12]}

In the Cary Joji Fukunaga film Beasts of No Nation (2015), Akuwudike played Supreme Commander Dada Goodblood, leader of an unnamed West African country torn by civil war. ^[13]

In September 2018, it was announced that Akuwudike had been cast alongside Joe Cole and Sope Dirisu in a new Cinemax television serial called Gangs of London , then in production. ^[14]

The Actor's career has been centered on stage performances which includes notable roles in movie production for the National Theatre and the Royal Shakespeare Company. ^[15]

Personal life

Jude's net worth is estimated to be around $4 million. Jude is currently at the age of 58 years as of 2023. He is married with a wife and children although the number of children is not stated. ^[16]

It is stated that both his parents played a notable role in his personal life and career. He has a brother and a sister although specific details are not mentioned. ^[17]

Filmography

Film

Key

†	Denotes film or TV productions that have not yet been released

Year	Film	Role	Notes
1988	A World Apart	Priest [18]	Drama
1997	Richard II	Scroop [19]	TV film
1998	The Ebb-Tide	Fakeeva	TV film
2000	A Likeness in Stone	DC Levi Pryor	TV film
2005	Sahara	Imam	Desert Adventure
2007	Jehovah's Witness	Percy	Short
2010	The Tempest	Boatswain	Drama
2015	Beasts of No Nation	Dada Goodblood	Drama / War
2020	Eyimofe	Mofe
2021	Benediction	Priest	Docudrama
2023	The Little Mermaid	Joshua	Fairy Tale
2024	The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim	Lord Thorne	Voice

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1990	Screenplay	Thomas	1 episode: "The Land of Dreams"
1992	Virtual Murder	Sergeant Gummer	Series regular 6 episodes
1993	Between the Lines	Custody Sergeant	1 episode: "Big Boys' Rules: Part II"
1994	The Bill	Mr. Jensen	1 episode: "All Along the Watchtower"
1996-1999	Roger Roger	Henry	Series regular 12 episodes
1998	Heat of the Sun	Elihu Mwangi	Episode: "The Sport of Kings"
1999	Kavanagh QC	Matthew Atta	Episode: "Previous Convictions"
2003	Silent Witness	Malcolm Linden	Episode: "Running on Empty"
	Holby City	Derek Fletcher	Episode: "Know When to Fold"
2005	Bad Girls	Leroy	1 episode
	The Last Detective	Bradshaw	Episode: "Towpaths of Glory"
2007	Silent Witness	Willi	Episode: "Suffer the Children"
2009	Moses Jones	Matthias Mutukula	Mini-series 3 episodes
	The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency	Oswald Ranta	Episode: "The Boy with an African Heart"
	Holby City	Marvin Stewart	Episode: "What Will Survive of Us"
2010	Law & Order: UK	Marcus Wright	Episode: "Skeletons"
2012	Holby City	Gabriel Vaughan	Episode: "Hail Caesar"
2013	Doctors	Thomas Tembe	3 episodes
2015	Cucumber	Ralph Sullivan	1 episode
2016	Stan Lee's Lucky Man	Dr. Marghai	Episode: "A Twist of Fate"
	Undercover	Al	1 episode
	Friday Night Dinner	Custody Sergeant	Episode: "The Funeral"
2017	Chewing Gum	Alex	Episode: "Age Ain't Nothing But a Number"
	Death in Paradise	Tony Garret	Episode: "In the Footsteps of a Killer"
	The A Word	Vincent Daniels	3 episodes
2017-2018	Fortitude	Doctor Adebimpe	Recurring role 10 episodes
2018	Kiri	Reverend Lipide	1 episode
2018-2020	In the Long Run	Uncle Akie	Series regular 7 episodes
2019	Moving On	Dr. Bello	Episode: "Frozen"
	Plebs	Agrippa	Episode: "The Banquet"
2020	Gangs of London	Charlie Carter	Recurring role 9 episodes
	On the Edge	Dad	Episode: "BBW"
2021	Manhunt	Delroy Grant	Series regular 4 episodes
2022	The Crown	Sydney Johnson	Episode: "Mou Mou"
2023	Casualty	Clark Johnson	Episode: "No Regrets"
	Culprits	Carl Marking	Episode: "Circle in a Circle"

Stage

Year	Title	Role	Venue	Notes
1988	The Park	Norman	Crucible Theatre, Sheffield
	Moon on a Rainbow Shawl	Ketch	Almeida Theatre, Islington, London
	Our Country's Good	Captain Watkin Tench	Royal Court Theatre, London
	The Recruiting Officer	Scruple/Costar Pearmain/Balance's Servant		also World Tour
1989	"Master Harold"...and the Boys	Sam	Bristol Old Vic, Bristol
1990	Death and the King's Horseman	Olunde	Royal Exchange, Manchester
1991	A Long Way From Home	Tomi	Tricycle Theatre, Kilburn, London
	Light in the Village	Rhodes	Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh
1993	Marching for Fausa	Sssi	Royal Court Theatre, London
	Wiseguy Scapino	Léandre	Theatr Clwyd, Mold
1994	Ion	Hermes-Athens	The Pit, Barbican Centre, London
	Poor Super Man	Shannon	Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh
1995	Richard II	Sir Stephen Scroop/Lord Fitwater	Cottesloe Theatre, Royal National Theatre, London
	The Machine Wreckers	William
1996	Nuremberg: The War Crimes Trial		Tricycle Theatre, Kilburn, London
1998	Not About Nightingales	The Queen	Cottesloe Theatre, Royal National Theatre, London
1999	Honk! The Ugly Duckling	Turkey	Olivier Theatre, Royal National Theatre, London
2000	A Doll's House	Nils Krogstad	Ambassadors Theatre, London
2001	Luminosity	Saul Mercer	The Pit, Barbican Centre, London
	Young Hamlet	King Claudius	Young Vic, The Cut, London
	Brixton Stories	Ossie	The Pit, Barbican Centre, London	also UK Tour
2002	The Winter's Tale	Antigonus	The Roundhouse, Chalk Farm, London & Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon
	Pericles	Cerimon
2003	Henry V	Pistol	Olivier Theatre, Royal National Theatre, London
	Edmond	A Pimp
2004	The Jungle Book	Akela	Northampton Royal, Northampton
2005	Pericles	Antichus/Lysinichus	Globe Theatre, London
2006	The Overwhelming	Joseph	Cottesloe Theatre, Royal National Theatre, London	with Out of Joint Theatre Company
2007	Macbeth	Banquo	Swan Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon
	Macbett	Glamiss
2008	God In Ruins		Soho Theatre, Soho, London
	The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui	Dullfeet	Lyric Hammersmith, London
	Walking Waterfall	Odame	Almeida Theatre, Islington, London	with Tiata Fahodzi
2009	Iya-Ile	Chief Adeyemi	Soho Theatre, Soho, London
	Othello	Othello	Citizens Theatre, Glasgow
	The Rime of the Ancient Mariner	The Mariner	Southbank Centre, London
2011	Great Expectations	Magwitch	Watford Palace Theatre, Watford
	Passing Wind	Justice	New Wolsey Theatre, Ipswich	part of Pulse Fringe Festival
	The Faith Machine	Lawrence/Patrick	Royal Court Theatre, London
	Britannicus	Burrhus	Wilton's Music Hall, Shadwell, London
2012	Moon on a Rainbow Shawl	Charlie Adams	Cottesloe Theatre, Royal National Theatre, London	also UK Tour
	Ignorance	Dr Nasir al-Maliki	Hampstead Theatre, London
2013	Othello	Othello	Cockpit Theatre, London	also USA Tour
2015	Hamlet Asylum Seeker	Claudius	UK Tour	with Talawa Theatre Company
	The Crucible	Reverend Parris	Bristol Old Vic, Bristol
2016	Workshop Negative	Mkhize	Gate Theatre, London
	The Royale	Wynton	Bush Theatre, Shepherd's Bush, London
2017	The Lower Depths	Abram Ivanich Medvediev	Arcola Theatre, London
	The Cherry Orchard	Yermolai Alexeievitch Lopakhin
2018	The Two Noble Kinsmen	Theseus	Globe Theatre, London
	The Convert	Uncle	Young Vic, The Cut, London
2019	Three Sisters	Eze	Lyttelton Theatre, Royal National Theatre, London
2022	Henry V	King of France/Archbishop of Canterbury/Sir Thomas Erpingham	Donmar Warehouse, London
	House of Ife	Solomon	Bush Theatre, London
2023	The Dumb Waiter	Various	Greenwich Theatre, London
	A Slight Ache	Various	Greenwich Theatre, London

Games

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2021	GTFO	Dr. Abeo Dauda

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Work	Result	Ref.
1994	Martini Rossi TMA Awards	Best Supporting Actor	Poor Super Man	Won	[20]
2008	Red Rock Film Festival - Grand Jury Prize	Special Achievement in Acting Role	Jehovah's Witness	Won	[21]
2016	Screen Nation Film and Television Awards	Favourite International Film (with Idris Elba & Ama K. Abebrese)	Beasts of No Nation	Won	[22]
2021	Africa Movie Academy Awards	Best Actor in a Leading Role	Eyimofe	Nominated	[23]

Notes

1. NetflixReleases. "Jude Akuwudike". www.netflixreleases.com. Retrieved 30 May 2022.
2. Tiziana Morosetti, Africa on the Contemporary London Stage (2018), p. 104.
3. Jane Milling, Modern British Playwriting: the 80s (2012), p. 211.
4. Timberlake Wertenbaker, Our Country's Good (2015), p. 16.
5. J. T. Rogers, The Overwhelming (2006), "Biographies".
6. "The Fatherland", programme from the Bush Theatre at Riverside, 1989.
7. "Who is Jude Akuwudike? Stage career, shows and more". 3 October 2024. Retrieved 7 June 2025.
8. About the Players Archived 11 December 2019 at the Wayback Machine at shakespeare.nd.edu (Shakespeare at Notre Dame). Retrieved 21 February 2019.
9. Plays and Players Applause, Issue 521 (1998), p. 9.
10. Plays International, Volume 18 (Chancery Publications, 2002), p. 14.
11. Howard Loxton (2011). "Great Expectations". British Theatre Guide.
12. Mary Hammond, Charles Dickens's Great Expectations: A Cultural Life, 1860–2012 (2015), Appendix C.
13. Ignatiy Vishnevetsky, "Idris Elba highlights the flawed Beasts of No Nation", 15 October 2015 at film.avclub.com. Retrieved 27 February 2019.
14. Alex Ritman, Gangs of London Cinemax Series Sets Cast dated 12 May 2018, hollywoodreporter.com. Retrieved 27 February 2019.
15. "Jude Akuwudike Biography, Early Life, Personal Life, Career, Family, Parents, Net Worth & More". whoiswriter.com. 9 November 2023. Retrieved 18 October 2024.
16. "Jude Akuwudike Biography, Early Life, Personal Life, Career, Family, Parents, Net Worth & More". whoiswriter.com. 9 November 2023. Retrieved 18 October 2024.
17. "Jude Akuwudike Biography, Early Life, Personal Life, Career, Family, Parents, Net Worth & More". whoiswriter.com. 9 November 2023. Retrieved 18 October 2024.
18. Bakare, Tonye (28 March 2021). "Jude Akuwudike: Being Eyimofe". The Guardian (Nigeria). Retrieved 22 August 2021.
19. Warner, Deborah. "Richard II, 1997". Deborah Warner. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
20. "Jude Akuwudike". Hamilton Hodell. Retrieved 2 October 2021.
21. "Jude Akuwudike - Awards". IMDb. Retrieved 2 October 2021.
22. "11th Screen Nation Film & Television Awards 2016: Rewarding Excellence – Celebrating Diversity". The Nigerian Voice. Retrieved 2 October 2021.
23. Banjo, Noah (29 October 2021). "FULL LIST: Ayinla, Omo Ghetto: The Saga bag multiple nominations at AMAA 2021". Punch Newspapers. Archived from the original on 29 October 2021. Retrieved 30 October 2021.

External links

• Jude Akuwudike at IMDb
• Jude Akuwudike at RADA