‘I Had Already Priced My Own Casket’ — Dele Odule Opens Up on His Darkest Moments

Veteran Yoruba actor Prince Dele Odule has given one of the most candid interviews of his career, revealing that at his lowest point, he had gone to a casket seller to price his own coffin.

“I Didn’t Believe I Could Break Through”

In a recent interview, Odule described a period of profound despair while living in Abeokuta, Ogun State, when he felt his life had completely fallen apart. “I had priced my own casket before when everything and my life were in shambles in Abeokuta,” he said. “I didn’t get myself anymore; I didn’t believe I could break through.”

What makes the revelation more striking is what he said next. His close colleague, actor Olaiya Igwe, was with him at the time. “Olaiya Igwe knows about it; I went there with him, and he started crying like a baby.” Two men, one a star of Nigerian cinema, standing in front of caskets — one of them pricing his own.

Who Is Dele Odule?

Born in 1959 in Ile-Ife and hailing from Oru Ijebu in Ogun State, Dele Odule has been a fixture in Nigerian cinema since the late 1980s. He is best known for his role in the landmark film Ti Oluwa Ni Ile and has served as President of the Theatre Arts and Movie Practitioners Association of Nigeria (TAMPAN). He is, by any measure, one of the most respected figures in the Yoruba film industry.

That someone of his stature could reach that kind of despair is not just a personal story — it speaks to the brutal economics of the Nigerian entertainment industry, where even successful careers can be punctuated by periods of real financial and emotional collapse.

A Story That Resonates

The interview has spread widely online, with many people connecting deeply to Odule’s honesty. In an industry where public figures are expected to project success constantly, his willingness to sit with the darkness of that period and name it clearly feels rare and necessary.

He made it through. And in telling that story, he may well have helped someone else hold on a little longer.

Sources: PM News Nigeria, Ladun Liadi’s Blog