Many consider crossing over the fifth year of marriage as an achievement in any spousal relationship. However, some marriages suffer from difficulties throughout and are just not strong enough to survive the special mark. And of course, Hollywood has no shortage of such failed short term marriages that even the tabloids have a hard time covering.
One such marriage is of Hollywood legend Wesley Snipes with his ex-wife April Dubois. The couple married young but unfortunately were not destined to go a long way. So, who is April Dubois and what has happened to her since her separation from Snipes?
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April is an African American Woman with a Possible French Heritage
April Eloise Dubois was born on January 31, 1961, in the United States of America. While not much is known about April, many sources have presumed her to have a French heritage due to her last name DuBois coming from an old French word that actually means ‘Wood’.
She had a short-lived marriage with Wesley Snipes
Before actor Wesley Snipes became a household name in Hollywood, he was just a normal guy who fell in love with a girl and started a life with her. That girl was April Dubois. While the circumstances of their original meeting are still in the dark, many believe that they probably met each other when they were in college.
Despite both of them being in their early 20s, they quickly got married in 1985. After Snipes was discovered by a talent agent, their seemingly normal life started to change. As Snipes started to get busier with work in the movie industry, their relationship also started to see cracks. The couple ultimately called it quits in 1990.
In 1988, April and Wesley Snipes welcomed their only son, Jelani Asar Snipes. When Jelani was just a toddler, he had the opportunity to have a brief cameo appearance in one of his father’s movies ‘Mo’ Better Blues’ directed by Spike Lee. This brief appearance in the media would go on to be Jelani’s last interaction with the movie industry.
After his parents separated from each other, he opted not to pursue his father’s footsteps but rather invested much of his time in education. According to multiple sources, Jelani has different business ventures including working as a Chief Financial Officer for Auraa Inc.
April Enjoys her Time Away from the Limelight
Extreme media attention to many could be very overwhelming. We cannot blame April for stepping away from the spotlight that was thrust upon her as her ex-husband started to get more recognition. After the divorce, April has been keeping her private life under the wraps. She is not active in any social media accounts and will probably continue to do so.
Her Ex-husband Wesley Got Remarried
Following the separation from April, it took Wesley Snipes more than a decade to marry again. In 2003, Snipes married Nakyung ‘Nikki’ Park who worked as a painter. The couple has four children together; Akehnaten Kihwa-T Snipes born in 2000, Iset Jua-T Snipes in 2001, Alaafia Jehu-T Snipes in 2004 and Alimayu Moa-T Snipes in 2007.
The Blade superstar has often mentioned that his children are his inspiration and the part of his life that he is most proud of. During an interview with Fatherly, he opened up about how fatherhood affected his portrayal of General Izzi in the 2021 comedy ‘Coming 2 America’. He said:
“General Izzi is the reflection of my children and their influence and impact on me. The timing, humour, the way they play things, the nuances. What you are seeing in my joy is the reflection of them and their effect on me.”
Looks like fatherhood really suits Mr Snipes.
Life After Divorce: What is April Doing Now?
The public attention that came with a famous husband quickly wore off after the divorce and April Dubois faded away from the Hollywood spotlight. Much of the credit for that also goes to April, since she too did not really enjoy the glitz and glamour of the industry. After stepping back from the spotlight, she dedicated her time to raising her son and followed the path of doing business.
She is presumed to be working for Auraa Inc. which is a Georgia based domestic profit corporation where she is one of the directors alongside her son Jelani. There is no information related to whether she decided to remarry or not. However, since her divorce was a long time ago we can presume that she might have found happiness one way or another.
What are April’s Ex-husband Wesley Snipes’s Thoughts on the Blade Recasting?
One of the best works Wesley Snipes is known for is his iconic portrayal of Blade in the superhero horror film trilogy with the same name. His performance in the movies made the comic book character a fan favourite and as years have gone by the role of the daywalker has certainly become even more iconic.
With the rise of MCU, Marvel has decided to reboot the Blade franchise too with two-time Oscar winner Mahershala Ali filling Snipes’ shoes. When the news about the casting broke out many reached out to Snipes to know his thoughts on the reboot. To the delight of everyone, Snipes himself revealed to be excited to see Ali as the vampire slayer and even congratulated him for the part.
In one of the Twitter posts that a fan posted noting that Ali would have a ‘hard time outdoing Wesley Snipes’, he responded with ‘He will do great. Looks like we are not the only ones excited to see Ali’s version of Blade.