Genoveva Umeh

Genoveva Kenechukwu Umeh is a British–Nigerian actress. She won the Best Supporting Actress award at The AMVCA in 2024 for her role in the Prime Video Original, Breath of Life.She was nominated for the Best Actress in a drama at the Africa Magic Viewers' Choice Awards 2022 for her role in A Tune Away. She also received critical acclaim for her roles in Nigerian's first Netflix original crime thriller series Blood Sisters and young adult series Far From Home. One of her major film roles include One Lagos Night (2019). She also leads as Shindara in Episode 4 of Showmax's Original drama series Crime and Justice Lagos (2022). In 2024, she won the best supporting actress at the 2024 AMVCA for her role in Breath of Life (2023).

EARLY LIFE

Genoveva Kenechukwu Umeh was born on 8 May 1995 in Enugu, Enugu State, Nigeria to Gaius Umeh, a computer engineer, and Ifeoma Umeh, a nurse. She lived in Enugu until age 12, attending Command Children's School for primary education and Command Day Secondary School for her first year of secondary school before moving with her family to the United Kingdom in 2006. In London she completed secondary education at St Mary's College of Education High School, later pursued a term at the Identity School of Acting in 2012, and earned an LLB Law degree with honours from the University of Surrey.

CAREER

Umeh returned to Nigeria in 2018 to pursue acting, writing and performing the one‑woman stage play "Home" at the Lagos Fringe Festival and appearing in the play "High" with Rue14 Studios. She gained attention with her lead role in the film A Tune Away (2020), earning a Best Actress nomination at the 2022 Africa Magic Viewers' Choice Awards. Subsequent roles include Love is War (2019), One Lagos Night (2021), and the short film Lizard (2020). Her breakout came with the Netflix series Blood Sisters (2022) as Timeyin Ademola, followed by Far From Home (2022) as Zina and the Prime Video original Breath of Life (2023). At the 2024 AMVCA she won Best Supporting Actress for Breath of Life. She has also featured in A Tribe Called Judah (2023) and several upcoming projects.

PERSONAL LIFE

Genoveva Umeh is single and keeps her relationship details private. She has a younger brother who lives with their parents in the United Kingdom. Her parents remain in London, with her father working as a computer engineer and her mother as a registered nurse. Umeh is based in Lagos for her acting career.