Paul Utomi

Paul Utomi
Born	Paul Chibuzo Utomi-Biyang (1981-10-06) 6 October 1981 (age 44) Madrid, Spain
Citizenship	Nigerian, Equatoguinean
Alma mater	Lagos State University
Occupations	Actor film director writer voice-over artist producer model
Years active	2011-present
Known for	Lekki Wives , O-Town , What Lies Within , Country Hard, The Reckoner
Website	https://about.me/paulutomi

Paul Utomi (born 6 October 1981) is a Nigerian actor, film director, producer, writer, voice-over artist and model. ^{[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7]}

Early life and education

Utomi was born to Mr and Mrs Utomi-Biyang in Madrid, Spain. His family moved back to Lagos, Nigeria, when he was one year old. He attended Comfort Nursery and Primary School in Lagos and proceeded to Legacy High School in Akowonjo, Lagos, where he completed his secondary education. He studied economics at Lagos State University, after which he studied acting and directing at the Centre for Film and Video Excellence in 2011. ^[8]

Career

Acting

Before acting, he wrote for sports publication called The Game Magazine and presented several episodes of AM Express Sports on NTA Network. ^[9] He joined the Nigerian movie industry (Nollywood) professionally and began his professional acting career, making his first appearance in the TV series, Tarima which aired circa 2012, where he played the lead character. The following year, he starred in the TV series Lekki Wives in which he played the character called Jude. ^[10]

Directing and producing

In 2017, he co-produced a drama thriller film titled What Lies Within which won "Best Feature Film" and "Best Overall Picture" at the Abuja International Zuma Film Festival 2017, ^[11] along with four accolades won at the Best of Nollywood Awards the same year. ^{[12] [13]} His debut feature film as a director, Country Hard, gained recognition when it was selected to showcase at the 10th edition of AFRIFF in 2021. ^[14] Utomi's third feature film as a director is the action fantasy film The Reckoner, released in 2021, in which Baaj Adebule played the lead role. ^[15]

Filmography

Title	Genre	Role	Year	Reference
Lekki Wives	TV series	Actor	2013	[16]
Shuga	TV series	Actor	2013	[17]
Gidi Up	Web series	Actor	2014
Apostates	Short film	Actor	2014	[18]
O-Town	Crime film	Actor	2015	[19] [20]
In My Father's House	Short film	Actor	2015
B Negative	Short film	Actor	2015
Leeway	Short film	Actor	2016
Heaven	Short film	Actor	2016
What Lies Within	Short film	Actor, writer, co-producer	2017	[21]
Dognapped	Comedy	Actor	2017	[22]
Living Close to You	TV series	Actor	2018
Hush	TV series	Actor	2018
E.V.E	TV series	Actor	2018	[23] [24]
Crossroads	Short film	Actor	2020	[25]
This Lady Called Life	Feature film	Actor	2020	[26] [27]
Tinsel	TV series	Actor	2020
Juju stories: Yam (Love Portion)	Film	Actor	2021	[28] [29]
Country Hard	Film	Actor	2021	[30]
Finding Hubby	Drama film	Actor	2021	[31]
Clinically Speaking	Film	Actor	2022	[32]
One Too Many	Film	Actor	2022	[33]
Iyanu: Dawn of Thunder	Animated series	Actor	2023
Love and Light	TV series	Actor	2023	[34]
The Leaders of Tomorrow (LOT)	TV series	Actor	2023
The Two Aishas	Film	Actor	2023	[35]
Relationshits	Film	Writer, director, producer	2015
Country Hard	Crime drama film	Writer, director, producer	2021	[36]
The Reckoner	Film	Director	2021	[37]
Mumu MAN	Film	Director	2023
Omo Awo	Film	Director	2023
Say Who Die	Film	Director	2025	[38] [39]

Awards and nominations

Year	Award ceremony	Category	Film	Result	Ref
2017	The African Film Festival (TAFF)	Best Actor Award	Family	Won	[40]
2017	Best of Nollywood Awards	Best Actor in a Leading Role (English)	What Lies Within	Nominated	[41]
2017	Best of Nollywood Awards	Movie of the Year Category	What Lies Within	Nominated	[42]
2017	Best of Nollywood Awards	Best Screenplay Category	What Lies Within	Nominated	[43]

References

1. "Bob-Manuel Udokwu joins Gov Obiano's cabinet". eelive.ng. 9 September 2020. Retrieved 21 November 2025.
2. "Paul Utomi debuts official trailer for 'Country Hard'". pulse.ng. 8 November 2021. Retrieved 21 November 2025.
3. "Top 15 Nigerian Actors to Watch Out For in 2021". thenet.ng. 11 January 2021. Retrieved 21 November 2025.
4. "New Nollywood standing on shoulders of older colleagues – Paul Utomi". Punch Nigeria. 30 April 2023. Retrieved 21 November 2014.
5. "Tope Tedela, Paul Utomi, debut with What Lies Within". Vanguard (Nigeria). 13 July 2017. Retrieved 21 November 2014.
6. "Paul Chibuzo Utomi". Party Jollof TV. 3 April 2023. Retrieved 21 November 2014.
7. "Paul Utomi Bio". nollywire.com. 1 September 2024. Retrieved 21 November 2014.
8. "Paul Utomi". Nlist.ng. 4 September 2023. Retrieved 21 November 2014.
9. "Nollywood Blockbuster, 'What Lies Within' To Drop Sept. 8". globalexcellenceonline.com. 29 August 2017. Retrieved 21 November 2014.
10. "Lekki Wives TV Series". imdb.com. 4 September 2023. Retrieved 21 November 2014.
11. "Director Biography - Paul Chibuzo Utomi". filmfreeway.com. 1 December 2017. Retrieved 22 November 2025.
12. "'What Lies Within' shines at BON Awards 2017". thenationonlineng.net. 20 January 2018. Retrieved 22 November 2025.
13. Chimezie, Amaka (21 December 2017). "BON Awards: 'What Lies Within' takes four, emerges big winner". Naijalife Magazine. Retrieved 22 November 2025.
14. "AFRIFF unveils official selection for its 10th edition". pulse.ng. 13 October 2021. Retrieved 22 November 2025.
15. "The Reckoner (2021)". allmovie.com. 4 September 2023. Retrieved 22 November 2025.
16. "Lekki Wives". Nolly Wire. 2013-12-26. Retrieved 2023-12-18.
17. "Three Month Window Shuga". IMDb . 2015.
18. "Nobert Young, Kehinde Bankole, Tope Tedela star in Apostates; to premiere this weekend". ynaija.com.
19. "Oris Aigbokhaevbolo: CJ Obasi's 'O-Town' is Overindulgent but Brilliant". bellanaija.com.
20. "The New "O-TOWN" Teaser is Here!". afieryfilm.com.
21. ""WHAT LIES WITHIN" (THE MOVIE) PREMIERE AUGUST 31ST 2017". societyreporters.com. 2017.
22. "4 Reasons why you should pay to see "Dognapped"!!!". xplorenollywood.com. 2017.
23. "E.V.E". nollywire.com. 2018.
24. "E.V.E - Audi Alteram Partem". IMDb . 2018.
25. "Crossroads Review". IMDb . 2020.
26. "First Look at Kayode Kasum's "This Lady Called Life" starring Bisola Aiyeola, Wale Ojo, Jemima Osunde". bellanaija.com. 2020.
27. "This Lady Called Life - Full Cast & Crew". tvguide.com. 2020.
28. "Juju Stories' lands 2022 Nigerian theatrical release". pulse.ng. 2021.
29. "Timini Egbuson, Adebukola Oladipupo & Paul Utomi star in Upcoming Anthology Film "Juju Stories"". thelagosreview.ng. 2021.
30. "'Country Hard' Review: Paul Utomi's Long Dive in a Sea of Sadness". whatkeptmeup.com. 2021.
31. "Finding Hubby? Not Again?". thenollywoodreporter.com. 2021.
32. "Clinically Speaking Cast". IMDb . 2022.
33. "First Look at the forthcoming film "One Too Many" starring Jide Kosoko, Omowunmi Dada & Dakore Akande". bellanaija.com. 2022.
34. "Four Reasons Why Africa Magic's 'Love and Light Series" Is A Must Watch". theforesight.com.ng. 2023.
35. "Ramadan Movie: Arabel debuts new movie, 'The Two Aishas'". von.gov.ng. 2024.
36. "5 Nollywood Films I Thoroughly Enjoyed". thewilldowntown.com. 2021.
37. "Paul Utomi Filmography". www.cine.com. 2021.
38. "MOVIE REVIEW: 'Say Who Die': Compelling acting overshadowed by inconsistencies". premiumtimesng.com. 2025.
39. "Say Who Die: Paul Utomi's Excessive Dose Of Suspense". the49thstreet.com. 2025.
40. "Winners at the African Film Festival, Dallas". trendyafrica.com. trendyafrica.com. 5 July 2017. Retrieved 22 November 2025.
41. "Omotola Jalade Ekeinde, Mercy Aigbe, Alexx Ekubo, "The Johnsons"… Here's the Full Nominee List for the 2017 Best of Nollywood (BON) Awards". Pulse. bellanaija.com. 12 September 2017. Retrieved 22 November 2025.
42. "'Slow Country' and 'What Lies Within' lead BON awards nominations". Netng. Retrieved 22 November 2025.
43. "FULL LIST: 'What Lies Within' lands eight BON Awards nominations". Thecable. thecable.ng. Retrieved 22 November 2025.

External links

• Paul Utomi at IMDb