Portal:African cinema/Selected biography/23
Ramsey Nouah (b. 19 December 1970) is a Nigerian actor and director. His acting career took off in the early 90s when he won a leading role in the Nigerian TV soap opera Fortunes (1993-94) in his first-ever audition. His first major movie role followed in 1996 with Silent Night and continued with a string of starring roles in popular films alongside Nollywood leading actresses Genevieve Nnaji, Stella Damasus, Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde and Stephanie Okereke Linus, among others, to become one of Nollywood's most in-demand actors.
In 2010 Nouah won the Africa Movie Academy Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his performance in The Figurine (2009), a supernatural thriller by Kunle Afolayan and the year’s biggest box office draw in Nigeria.
Nouah made his directorial debut with Living in Bondage: Breaking Free in 2019, a sequel to the Nollywood classic Living in Bondage (1992), and which ranks 21st on the list of highest-grossing Nigerian films of all time. The film garnered over a dozen nominations and multiple wins, including seven awards at the 2020 Africa Magic Viewers Choice Awards, including Best Overall Movie and Best Best Director.
In 2020 he went on to direct Rattle Snake: The Ahanna Story, a remake of the Nollywood classic action film Rattlesnake (1995). The film holds the 43rd spot on the list of highest-grossing Nigerian films of all time. A box office success, Rattlensnake also secured over three dozen award nominations and multiple wins including another AMVCA Best Director award for Nouah in 2022.
Tòkunbò, an Action drama film starring Gideon Okeke in the title role, is Nouah’s third directorial feature. It was released on Netflix on August 23rd, reaching a 10 Top ranking in Nigeria within its first week.