Meet the voice actors behind the characters in Jay Jay: The Chosen One

Showmax’s first animated series, Jay Jay: The Chosen One is a superhero adventure that follows 11-year-old Austin as the masked hero, ‘Jay Jay’. The show follows the reimagined childhood of legendary Nigerian footballer, Augustine ‘Jay Jay’ Okocha, who played for the Nigerian national team between the early 1990s and 2000s.

The titular character has powers to protect the animal kingdom from Boss and the Ingies, an evil ring of poachers. He also participates in a high school football tournament with his rag-tag group of friends with hopes of winning. We get to follow his adventures as a superhero and an aspiring footballer.

Here are the voices behind some of the awesome characters in the 13-part series.

Prince Unigwe as Jay Jay

Jay Jay, the protagonist and protector of the jungle, is voiced by the talented child actor, Prince Unigwe. He started acting in 2015 when he appeared in The Therapist.

He has since appeared in several movies and TV series, including King of Boys, Chief Daddy, My Siblings and I, Dance with Mama, Glamour Girls, etc. Prince Unigwe is also a model, appearing on billboards and in TV commercials for brands. He is a recipient of the NMAA Super Kid Model Award.

Chinedu Ikedieze as Obi

Obi, a friendly slow-talker recruited to play defense, is voiced by none other than Chinedu Ikedieze, the iconic comedy actor. Chinedu is one half of the iconic comedy duo Aki and Paw Paw. He has starred in some of the funniest Nollywood movies to date, including Reggae Boys, 2 Rats, and The Johnsons. He has appeared in over 150 films in a career spanning 20 years. In 2007, he received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the African Movie Academy Awards (AMAA). He was also honoured by then President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan for his incredible contributions to Nollywood and the economic growth of the country.

Samuel Ajibola as Tayo/Banda

Samuel Ajibola started out as a child actor at age 6 with Tears for Love. He lends his voice to the characters Tayo and Banda. Tayo is the nervous goalkeeper whose glasses are always breaking, while Banda is a quiet friend who zones out a lot and says variations of the word ‘‘really?’’. Samuel Ajibola is the first Nigerian actor to win the award for Best Kid Actor at the Rhema Awards and twice at the Reel Awards, three years in a row. In 2017, he won the AMVCA for Best Actor in an M-Net Comedy Series for his role as Spiff in The Johnsons. For his comedic turn as Spiff in The Johnsons, he won the Nigerian Reliable Awards and City People Entertainment Awards in 2016 and 2017.

Eric Obinna as Emma

Eric Obinna is the voice behind Emma, Jay Jay’s supportive older brother, and the pro footballer of the family whom Jay Jay looks up to. Eric Obinna is a veteran actor known for his many films, including Showmax’s Diiche. The actor is also a writer and analyst. He has been in several films, including Inside Life, Gbas Gbos, Igba Nkwu, and many more.

Mena Sodjie as Ada, Austine’s mum

Mena Sodje voices Ada, Austin’s mum, a storekeeper and a loving but strict mother who stays two steps ahead of her children. Mena Sodje is an alumnus of Delta State University, where she studied accounting before delving into acting. She trained at the Royal Arts Academy Nigeria. She kicked off her acting career in 2015 with a minor role in Jenifa’s Diary and has since starred in Tinsel, To Love Again, To Alice, and others. Her breakout role came in 2020 in the Africa Magic telenovela, Riona, where she plays Queen Misan.

Lexan Peters as Prince

Lexan Peters voices Austin’s rival, the mean bully, Prince. He speaks in the first person. Peters is an actor famously known for his roles as Jide Savage in Ndani’s Schooled and Peter in MTV’s Shuga.

Pamilerin Ayodeji as Isaac

Pamilerin voices Isaac, an overconfident striker who is recruited by Austin to help them win the tournament. Pamilerin Ayodeji is a talented child actor who has been in several critically acclaimed films, including Lizards, Poor-ish, and Prime Video’s Gangs of Lagos, where she plays Young Teni.

Catch new episodes of Jay Jay: The Chosen One, now streaming on Showmax every Thursday.