Liz Benson Biography: Children, Age, Husband, Movies, Net Worth, State of Origin, Instagram

Liz Benson, born Elizabeth Benson on April 5, 1966, in Etinan, Akwa Ibom State, is a veteran Nigerian actress, evangelist and philanthropist widely regarded as one of the pioneering figures of Nollywood.

She began acting as a child at age five and studied Dramatic Arts at Sylvania State College in the United States.

Her big break came in 1993 with the role of Mrs. Agnes Johnson in the NTA soap opera Fortunes, and she cemented her stardom the following year with Glamour Girls, one of Nollywood’s earliest blockbuster home videos.

At the height of her fame, Benson stepped away from acting in 1996 after becoming a born-again Christian, choosing to focus on evangelism and select faith-aligned film roles. She married Bishop Great Ameye in 2009 and has continued to divide her time between ministry work and occasional returns to the screen, including a notable comeback in Mercy Johnson’s A Mother’s Son.

Over her career, she has won honours such as Best Actress in a Supporting Role at the Africa Movie Academy Awards and a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Best of Nollywood Awards, cementing her legacy as one of the industry’s most respected veterans.

Liz Benson
Wiki Facts & About Data
Real Name:	Elizabeth Benson
Stage Name:	Liz Benson
Born:	April 5, 1966 (age 60 years old)
Place of Birth:	Etinan, Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria
Nationality:	Nigerian
Ethnicity:	Ibibio
Education:	Sylvania State College, USA (Dramatic Arts)
Religion:	Christianity
Parents:	Mr. and Mrs. Benson
Siblings:	3
Spouse:	Bishop Great Ameye (m. 2009); Samuel Gabriel Etim (m. early 1990s, deceased 1998)
Children:	Lilian Etim, Richard Etim, Roseline Etim
Occupation:	Actress, Evangelist, Television Personality, Philanthropist
Net Worth:	$300,000-$700,000

Early Life & Education

Liz Benson, born Elizabeth Benson, was born on April 5, 1966, in Etinan, Akwa Ibom State, in Nigeria’s South-South region, making her a sun sign of Aries.

She hails from an Ibibio family, though a few sources describe her lineage as Efik; both ethnic groups are native to Akwa Ibom State.

She is a devout born-again Christian and full-time evangelist, a faith identity she embraced after stepping away from acting in 1996.

Her parents are publicly known as Mr. and Mrs. Benson, as their full names have not been documented publicly. Benson is the second of four children, though the names of her three siblings are not publicly known.

Regarding her education, most sources place her at Sylvania State College in the United States, where she earned a degree in Dramatic Arts, though a smaller number of sources name Savannah State University or Havana State University in Georgia, so the exact institution isn’t fully settled across accounts.

Before travelling abroad, she attended Lady Lak School in Yaba and Edgerley College in Calabar, where her early interest in drama and stage performance took shape.

Career

Liz Benson began performing as a child in 1971, appearing in stage productions and school dramas before joining the theatrical group Collective Artistes at the National Theatre, where she took roles in plays such as Femi Osofisan’s Who’s Afraid of Solarin? and Wole Soyinka’s The Bacchae of Euripides.

Her transition to screen work came in 1993 when she starred in the NTA soap opera Fortunes as Mrs. Agnes Johnson, a role that ran for nearly two years and turned her into a household name across Nigeria. That same year she also appeared in the home video Circle of Doom, one of her earliest film credits.

Benson’s defining breakthrough arrived in 1994 with Glamour Girls, a controversial but hugely successful film directed by Fred Amata that centred on women navigating wealth, ambition and survival in urban Nigeria.

The role established her as one of the most bankable actresses of the era, and she went on to feature in a long run of Nollywood titles including True Confession, Diamond Ring, Witches, Circle of Doom, Shame, Back to Life, Last Warning, Evil Men 1 and 2, Conspiracy, Izaga, Burden, Stolen Child, Faces, Dead End, Tycoon and Body of Vengeance, among others. She became particularly known for playing strong, complex maternal and society-woman characters.

At the peak of her career in 1996, Benson stepped away from acting following the death of her first husband and her embrace of born-again Christianity, choosing thereafter to accept only roles she felt aligned with her faith.

She made a notable comeback in 2013 with Living Funeral, a film addressing breast cancer awareness that earned eight nominations at the Africa Magic Viewers Choice Awards, and resurfaced again in Still Falling (2021). In 2024, she returned to sets once more for A Mother’s Son, produced by Mercy Johnson and directed by Vincent De Anointed, alongside co-stars Mike Godson, Evia Simon, Ozioma Maurice and George Inaibeh.

Across her career, she has picked up recognition including Best Actress in a Supporting Role at the Africa Movie Academy Awards, Best Actress in a Leading Role at the City People’s Entertainment Awards, and a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Best of Nollywood Awards in 2014.

Social Media

• Wikipedia: Liz Benson
• IMDb: Liz Benson
• Facebook: Liz Benson

Personal Life

Liz Benson is currently 60 years old. Her height has not been publicly confirmed.

Benson’s first marriage was to Samuel Gabriel Etim, whom she married in her early twenties. The union produced three children before Samuel died when Benson was in her mid-twenties, a loss she has said gave her the strength to raise her children alone.

In July 2009, at age 43, she married her second husband, Bishop Great Ameye of Freedom Family Assembly, in a quiet court ceremony in Abuja followed by a church wedding at Rainbow Christian Assembly in Warri, Delta State. The couple now run their ministry together, with Ameye serving as pastor in Jesse Town, Delta State, and Benson working full-time as an evangelist.

Her three children from her first marriage are Lilian Etim, Richard Etim and Roseline Etim. Lilian, her eldest, married Promise Ugochukwu Deribe in 2017 and made Benson a grandmother following the birth of her son, Elkanah, in 2019. Richard completed his tertiary education in Yola, Adamawa State, while Roseline studied in the United Kingdom.

Benson’s dating history beyond her two marriages is not publicly confirmed.

Net Worth

Liz Benson has an estimated net worth between $300,000 and $700,000.

Her wealth stems primarily from her decades-long acting career in Nollywood during the 1990s and her subsequent returns to the screen, though no figure has been independently verified.

Filmography

• Circle of Doom (1993)
• Fortunes (1993, TV soap opera, as Mrs. Agnes Johnson)
• Glamour Girls (1994)
• True Confession (1995)
• Diamond Ring (1998)
• Witches (1998)
• Shame
• Back to Life
• Last Warning
• Evil Men 1
• Evil Men 2
• Conspiracy
• Izaga
• Burden
• Stolen Child
• Faces
• Dead End
• Tycoon
• Body of Vengeance
• Scores to Settle
• Toko Taya
• Political Control
• Lizard Life
• Dearest Mummy
• Living Funeral (2013)
• Busted (2017)
• Still Falling (2021)
• A Mother’s Son (2024)

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