Mo Abudu, a celebrated figure in Nollywood and one of TIME Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People of 2025, has built a legacy by challenging expectations—especially around age and ambition.
Mosunmola “Mo” Abudu is a media entrepreneur, filmmaker, and philanthropist whose career continues to defy convention.
At 60, she’s not slowing down—instead, she’s expanding her influence across continents. Recently named one of TIME Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People of 2025, Abudu’s journey is a powerful reminder that it’s never too late to dream bigger.
Her professional evolution began at 40, when she ventured into hospitality with the launch of Protea Hotel Oakwood Park, the first purpose-built Protea hotel in Nigeria. Around the same time, she launched “Moments with Mo”, Africa’s first syndicated daily talk show. The program would later birth regional franchises like “Moments” and “Moments Z”, showcasing her ability to create platforms for pan-African dialogue.
In 2013, at 49, she founded EbonyLife TV—a bold, culturally-driven channel broadcasting shows such as “The Spot”, “EL Now”, “The Governor”, “Castle & Castle”, “Desperate Housewives Africa”, and “Ojos in the House”.
A year later, she established EbonyLife Films, debuting with “Fifty”, and producing box office hits like “The Wedding Party”, “Chief Daddy”, “Your Excellency”, “Oloture”, and “The Royal Hibiscus Hotel”.
By 53, Abudu unveiled EbonyLife Place in Lagos—a luxury entertainment and lifestyle destination featuring The White Orchid Hotel, EbonyLife Cinemas, and restaurants like Turaka and Jinja.
At 56, she founded EbonyLife Creative Academy, a government-supported initiative offering industry-standard training to emerging Nigerian filmmakers and actors.
Then, in her late fifties, she launched Mo Abudu Films, under which she wrote and directed short films “Her Perfect Life” and “Iyawo Mi”. Both works gained international recognition, earning selections at global festivals such as Cannes Short Film Corner, HollyShorts, and Martha’s Vineyard African-American Film Festival.
Most recently, in 2025 at age 60, she launched EbonyLife Place London, the UK’s first African cinema and creative hub—a new home for African storytelling, food, fashion, and film in the diaspora.
Mo Abudu’s trajectory shows that ambition doesn’t have an expiry date. Her life’s work is not only reshaping Nollywood but redefining what it means to start over, to grow, and to lead—at any age.