Ufuoma Stacey McDermott (born April 23, 1981) is a Nigerian actress, director, former model, and beauty pageant winner. Ufuoma McDermott has demonstrated her versatility as an entertainer by modelling, acting, producing, and directing. In addition, she has received numerous medals and recognitions for her outstanding show of uniqueness.

Ufuoma Stacey Biography

Ufuoma Stacey Ejenobor-McDermott (born on April 23, 1981) was born in Benin City, the capital of Edo State, Nigeria, to Urhobo parents from Delta State. She moved frequently, first from Benin City to Jos, where she spent the majority of her toddler years, and then to Lagos, where she has lived for the majority of her life and continues to stay.

When she was seven years old, her father gave her the nickname ISIO (which means “star” in Urhobo). She was called after the top actress of NTA Benin’s TELEFEST series, The Pot of Life. For her nursery and primary schooling, she attended Alama Private School, Jos, Plateau State; Tunwase Nursery and Primary School, Ikeja, Lagos; and Molly International Nursery and Primary School, Ajao Estate, respectively.

She then attended Federal Government College in Odogbolu, Ogun State, for her secondary education. McDermott has a degree in French Language from the University of Lagos, where she participated in a Federal Government scholarship holiday program, and a master’s degree in Public and International Affairs from the same university. She also holds certifications and credentials from the Alliance Française and NIIT.

In 2011, she took an acting course at the New York Film Academy in Los Angeles, followed by a filmmaking course at Dov Simen’s Hollywood Film Institute. She earned a Human Resource Management Certificate from the London Business School in 2013.

In the summer of 2015, she participated in the Relativity Education program from Nigeria, which is owned by Relativity Media in Beverly Hills.

Career

She began her entertainment career as a photographic model in 2000, progressing to the runway and beauty pageants. By 2002, she had entered two mini-pageants, won the Miss Ebony beauty pageant, and competed in her first national pageant, Miss Commonwealth (Vanessa Ekeke), where she won the Miss Congeniality award.

Later that year, she placed first runner-up at the Queen Afrik beauty pageant (Tamilore Kuboye). In 2003, she competed in the Queen of All Nations beauty contest (Dubra Fufeyin), finishing first runner-up once again.

In 2004, she competed in the Miss Nigeria beauty pageant and placed first runner-up. Not long after, she was crowned Miss Earth Nigeria and went on to represent the country at Miss Earth 2004.

In February 2004, Ejenobor chose to pursue a film career. She began her film career with Zeb Ejiro’s The President Must Not Die and has since appeared in other films. In May 2005, she played her first starring part in Life and Death, her third movie after The President Must Not Die and Guy on the Line.

By December 2005, she had played Chibuzor in the Royal Roots network’s Edge of Paradise television series. In 2008, she played “Lillian Wright” in the television series My Mum and I, which earned her a nomination for best actress at the 2010 Festival de Télévision de Monte-Carlo and one at The Terracotta Nigerian TV and Film Awards. She was nominated for Actor of the Year 2011 at the Future Awards.

In January 2018, McDermott repeated her roles as “Mama Baby”, “Women Call Leader”, and “Sister Esther” in the theatrical performance Hear Word!, which returned to Harvard for the second year in a row and was produced at the famed American Repertory Theatre in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.

The production explores a variety of subjects that address societal challenges affecting women. The play, which premiered in Lagos, Nigeria, in 2014, also stars Joke Silva, Taiwo Ajayi-Lycett, Elvina Ibru, and Bimbo Akintola.

Hear Word! was included at the Edinburgh International Festival in August 2019, where McDermott, Joke Silva, Taiwo Ajayi-Lycett, and other cast members performed at Edinburgh’s Royal Lyceum. The show was hailed as “at once tough and inspirational” by The Guardian UK, which gave it a three-star rating.

In July 2019, McDermott staged a live-theatre event called “The USM Show with Ufuoma McDermott” at Lagos’ Eko Hotel and Towers. The evening featured live music, dancing routines, and the launch of her theatrical show “The Magic of a Dream”.

Toritseju Ejoh directed The Magic of a Dream, which included performances by numerous renowned Nigerian actors, including Femi Branch, Chioma Akpotha, Offiong Anthony (Thin Tall Tony), Akah Nnani, and Zara Udofia-Ejoh. The USM Show also featured live musical and comedy performances by a variety of Nigerian artists, including Teni the Entertainer, Seyi Law, and MC Abbey.

McDermott announced during the launch of her directorial debut that she began scripting the story for the film Christmas Is Coming in 2013. The film, however, was released in November 2017, just before the Christmas holidays. What Just Happened, which was released in Nigerian cinemas in 2018, marked her second producing credit.

Pageant

Awards

Filmography

• The President Must Not Die
• Life Partner
• Queen of My Heart
• Secrets and Lies
• Life and Death
• Guy on The Line
• Missed Love
• Two Good Friends
• Desperate Billionaire
• Unknown Angel
• Height of Indecision
• Baby Guards
• My Experience
• Emotional Blackmail
• One Chance
• Painful World
• Honey Desire
• Edge of Paradise
• Dangerous Friends
• Nebuchadnezzar
• Dream come True
• Saving Sarah
• Devil’s Workshop
• Classical Fraud
• Mortal Man
• Sounds of Poverty
• Super story ( Everything It Takes )
• Twist of Fate
• A Night in the Philippines
• Buy Me a Rose
• Titanic Tussle
• Rose of Africa
• Italian Deal
• Ice Cold
• Divine Partner
• Final Tussle
• Empty Coffin[citation needed]
• Be Yourself
• My Mum And I
• Hot Island
• Wise In-Law
• A Private Storm
• Vagary
• This House Is Not For Sale
• Hear Word
• Kin
• Okoro: The Prince
• Hear Word
• Merciful
• Duplicity
• Hear Word
• Wives on Strike
• This Thing Called Marriage
• Okafor’s Law
• The Women
• Christmas is Coming
• Wives on Strike: The Revolution
• Esohe
• What Just Happened
• Merry Men 2
• Love Bane
• Superstar
• Mimi
• The Blood Covenant
• Onyeegwu
• Merry Men 3
• Wives on Strike: The Uprising

Personal life

Ejenobor married Steven McDermott on April 23, 2010. She formally changed her name to Ufuoma McDermott on May 23, 2014, at a Lagos high court.

McDermott claimed in an October 2024 interview with Chude Jideonwo that he battled kidney disease for 12 years before being diagnosed with stage 3 in 2023.

Net Worth

Ufuoma McDermott is one of Nigeria’s most successful actresses, with an estimated net worth of $1 million to $5 million. Her riches are primarily derived from her film career, which includes both acting and production.

Social Media

Instagram: @ufuomamcdermott