Nollywood is in mourning following the death of actress Tolani Akintude from a heart attack

Nollywood actress Tolani Akintude has died of a heart attack in the UK. The news of her death was shared by Best of Nollywood Awards organiser Seun Oloketuyi who took to Facebook to write “Former place star Tolani Akintude dies of heart attack in UK, leaving behind a daughter. May she find peace with her maker.”

Following Seun’s Facebook post, many have shared their own thoughts on the death of Tolani Akintude. Princess Feyikemi Ayoola Egbeyemi said: “My dearest Tolani… words fail me when I heard about your demise, may you rest well. May the Lord send helpers to your daughter IJN. Continue to rest well.”

According to Pulse Nigeria, “Before relocating abroad, Akintunde made a name for herself in Nollywood, starring in popular TV soaps like 'Everyday People' and 'Palace', both produced by Tajudeen Adepetu and aired in the early 2000s.

“Having established herself as a key figure in the Nigerian movie industry, Akintunde relocated to the United Kingdom, where she launched a new career and ventured into business.”

Earlier this month, actress and plus-size advocate Monalisa Stephen tragically died at the age of 33. Seun Oloketuyi, the Chief Executive Officer of Best of Nollywood (BON), shared the news of her passing on Instagram and wrote: “Brand influencer Monalisa Ayobami Stephen is dead. She died yesterday in Lagos after losing the fight against low sugar and internal bleeding. Her immediate younger sister confirmed the death of this hardworking and beautiful soul.”

Fans took to Instagram to pay tribute to Monalisa and one fan wrote: “Rip 🪦 Queen 😢😢 the world did this to you by bullying and body shaming you to a fault 😢 May your soul haunt Everyone who bullied you to losing weight 😢 Now that you lost your life to low sugar level ( hypoglycaemia ) allegedly, the weight loss is to what end now ? 😢😢😢😢 This is so so so sad 😭,” whilst another wrote: “Omoh...!!! I just heard something now o... Am so speechless... I hope it's not true o...😢😢😢😢😢.”

In March 2025 Nollywood actress Nkechi Nweje died at the age of 60 after a brief illness. Movie producer Stanley Ajemba, known as Stanley Ontop, paid tribute to her on Instagram and wrote: “Nollywood is in tears as we lost one of our vibrant actresses, @nkechi.nweje, after a brief illness. I couldn’t post since morning because it felt like a dream to me.

“Ezigbo Nwanyi Onitsha, rest in peace, ma’am. My best friend, she always called me to give advice. The last time we spoke was during the Queenth saga, and she told me, ‘Ontop, stop.’ I am still speechless.”