A short video clip has appeared on Twitter (X) showing the remains of Nollywood Actor, Junior Pope, wrapped in blue hospital sheets with cotton-wool stuffed in his nostrils, after a boat accident on the way to a shooting location.
It apparently rests the controversy surrounding the fate of the Nollywood Actor, whose real name was Pope Obumneme Odonwodo.
After the news broke of his unfortunate accident and death of the Actor, the President of Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN), Emeka Rollas, contradicted the information.
A mammoth crowd swamped upon Saint Joseph Hospital in Asaba, Delta State, where doctors struggled to revive Junior Pope after reportedly detecting some sign of life.
Rollas has since reversed himself.
Taking to Instagram on Thursday, the AGN President wrote, “It is so so sad that our joy was shortlived.
“My first post was out of excitement when we noticed his tingling fingers. Two notable hospitals tried their best to revive him but to no avail.
“God knows the best. We finally lost him.”
Junior Pope and three yet unnamed actors lost their lives as their boat capsized in Anam River, Anambra State, while returning from a filming location.
On his Instagram page on Wednesday evening, Rollas said the Actor was alive and was receiving treatment at an undisclosed hospital.
He wrote, “What God cannot do does not exist. Junior Pope is alive.
“He is taking treatment in the hospital.”
Filmmaker, Sam Olatunji, had announced on Wednesday that Junior Pope died alongside three others after their boat capsized while attempting to cross the River Niger to shoot a film.
Just hours before the accident, Junior Pope shared a video of himself on Tuesday, April 9, 2023, offering prayers for a safe journey.
The 39-year-old actor had earlier shared a video of him and four others on his Instagram page travelling to the movie location on a boat.
He wrote in his caption, “See me lamenting. The risk we take to entertain you: crossing river 9ja yesterday with no life jacket…. Na wahooooo Who does that ??”
In 2010, he won the award for Nollywood Most Promising Actor in Nigeria at the Entertainment Factory Awards.
Other awards he won include Best Actor in a Supporting Role at the Africa Magic Viewers Choice Awards and Best Actor of the Year at the Africa Movie Academy Awards, among others.
Junior Pope leaves behind his wife and three children.
Junior Pope was born on May 7, 1984, in Bamenda, Cameroon, but moved to Nigeria at a young age.
Junior Pope started his career in acting and made his debut in Nollywood in 2006.
He acted in over 150 Nollywood movies such as “Secret Adventure,” “Nkwocha,” “Bachelor Eve,” “Mad sex,” “Bitter Generation,” “Vengeance of Bullet,” “The Cat,” “The Generals”, and “Wrong Initiation.”
