| Birth Date: | 19 January 1964 |
| Birth Place: | London, United Kingdom |
| Nationality: | Nigerian |
| Citizenship: | Nigerian |
| Other Names: | Ebele Okaro Onyiuke |
| Alma Mater: | University of Calabar |
| Occupation: | Actress, Producer |
| Notable Works: | Bambitious |
| Awards: | 2017 Africa Magic Viewers Choice Award, Best Supporting Actress |
Ebele Okaro Onyiuke (born 19 January 1964) is a Nigerian actress and film producer.
Ebele Okaro was born on 19 January 1964 in London and raised in Enugu State, southeastern part of Nigeria.[1] She began acting while attending the Santa Maria Primary School[2] and continued while at Nsukka's Queen of the Holy Rosary Secondary School where she wrote her Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination (SSCE). Initially she began her studies in education at the University of Calabar (Unical), Cross River State, in the southern region of Nigeria, but later discovered that her passion was for the dramatic arts, leading her to earn a Bachelor's degree in Theatre Arts.[3] Okaro's mother is a television producer and her father, an engineer who also has great interest in arts and literature.
After graduating from university, Okaro served her National Youth Service at the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), where she made some television appearances. However, after the Youth Service, she worked with an embassy in Lagos and later in a bank before returning to acting in the Nigerian movie industry (known as Nollywood).
In 2014, Okaro produced and acted in Musical Whispers, a movie that advocates for loving care for children with autism.[4] [5] [6] It featured other prominent Nigerian actors, most notably Chioma Chukwuka and Kalu Ikeagwu.
She has become known as the "Mama of Nollywood" and has earned the respect of both fans and colleagues. Ebele always knew she wanted to become an actress. Although she left acting for a short time when there was a huge decline in the Nigeria Movie Industry.[7] It led her to earn a living somewhere else. She worked at an embassy in Lagos and also took up a Banking job at the time but when back to acting when things got better.[8]
She married into the Onyiuke family.
| Year | Award | Category | Film | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Best Supporting Actress | 4-1 Love | [9] | ||
| 2018 | Africa Magic Viewers' Choice Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Black Rose | [10] | |
| 2019 | Best of Nollywood Awards | Best Actress in a Supporting Role (English) | Black Rose | [11] | |
| 2020 | Africa Magic Viewers' Choice Awards | Best Actress in a Comedy (Movie/TV Series) | Smash | [12] [13] | |
| Year | Title | Role | Director | Notes | References | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eziza | [14] | |||||
| Moving Fingers | ||||||
| Red Light | ||||||
| Shallow Waters | ||||||
| Third Eye | ||||||
| 1996 | Hostages | Tade Ogidan | [15] | |||
| 2006 | 30 Days | Mama Alero | Mildred Okwo | [16] | ||
| 2014 | Bambitious | Dr. Ese | Okechukwu Oku | [17] | ||
| 2014 | Chetanna | Ugomma (as Ebere Okaro) | Ikechukwu Onyeka | Igbo language | [18] | |
| 2014 | Musical Whispers | Jasmine | Bond Emerua | Also the producer | ||
| 2016 | 4-1-Love | Uju's Mother | Ikechukwu Onyeka | Best Supporting Actress in a Drama - 2017 Africa Magic Viewers Choice Awards | ||
| 2015 | The Powerful Babies | Chioma | Nonso Emekaekwue | Written by Greg Chyke Inawodoh and Ifeanyi Ononye | [19] | |
| 2015 | Road to Yesterday | Victoria's mum | Ishaya Bako | [20] | ||
| 2017 | Karma | Mama Ngozi | Mayor Ofoegbu | [21] | ||
| 2018 | Black Rose | Rose | Okey Oku | [22] | ||
| 2019 | Eunice Nworie | Ramsey Nouah | ||||
| 2023 | A Tribe Called Judah | grandma | Adeoluwa Owu and Funke Akindele | |||
| 2024 | Adam Bol | Grandmother | Cheta Chukwu and Almaz Alimzhanov | Action/Comedy | ||
| 2024 | Out of Breath | Ezenwanyi | Obi Emelonye |