According to recent box office records, the economic hardship we face as a nation appears to have little to do with cinema attendance in Nigeria.
Despite the hike in movie ticket prices, the average cost is N6000. Yet, Nigerians went out in their numbers to watch Funke Akindele’s latest effort, ‘Everybody Loves Jenifa,’ and set a new record.
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Funke, widely regarded as the Queen of the Nigerian box office, outdid herself again on Saturday, as she set a new record as usual.
This is according to a new report by Box Office Nigeria and Filmhouse Cinema Distribution on Saturday.
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Reporting on X, Box Office Nigeria said ‘Everybody Loves Jenifa’ didn’t make it across all cinemas Nationwide. Yet, it jinxed any record set by a film at the box office in Nigeria, beating even Funkes 2023 record.
The report said over 9000 people visited the cinemas on Saturday, the opening night, to see the film.
“Everybody Loves Jenifa’ shattered box office records yesterday. It had the biggest opening day for a Nollywood film with ₦45.2M!.
“ ELJ drew 9,409 admissions, surpassing (A Tribe Called Judah) ATCJ’s 8,870 despite not screening at Genesis & missing most of the day at Silverbird Cinemas. All of these are outside of the advanced screening. Please note that the platform pointed out that the final figures could be slightly higher.
Similarly, Film One also broke the news on their social media handles, revealing that the film had the biggest opening day for a release in 2024 and the highest admission count for a release in the same year.
Everybody Loves Jenifa
‘Everybody Loves Jenifa’ is a spin-off of the 28-series Jenifa franchise. The new movie explores fresh challenges for its main character, Jenifa.
Jenifa’s popularity is threatened when her new neighbour, Lobster, begins to outshine her charity work, causing her jealousy and inadequacy.
The movie brings back characters from her 2008 debut and a-listers like Patience Ozukwor, Jide Kosoko, D’Banj, Falz, Nancy Isimie, Layiasabi, Damilo Oni, and Stan Nze.
In December 2023, Funke Akindele released her family-centred movie, “A Tribe Called Judah”.The film grossed over 1 billion naira that December.
In January, Akindele’s A Tribe Called Judah became the first Nollywood film to surpass N1 billion at the box office.
Akindele produced and directed the film, while Adeoluwa Owu co-directed.
FilmHouse Group announced this in a statement, saying the historic feat marks a significant milestone in the Nigerian film industry and showcases the global appeal and strength of local productions at the cinema.
The movie tells the story of a single Mother with four sons from different fathers – a deceased husband, an absconding father, and a pregnancy born of love but rejected by her lover’s family—mistakes made in her youth and the struggles of raising four boys all by herself.
READ ALSO: Pirate Everybody Loves Jenifa’, get arrested Funke Akindele
Two hard-working sons and two lazy, loutish sons were always at loggerheads, yet they immediately became a team when defending their mother or themselves. The movie featured Timini Egbuson, Jide Kene, User Usman, Tobi Makinde, Olumide Oworu, and Uso Arukwe.
“Everybody Loves Jenifa” is targeted to reach N5 billion, and the possibilities are glaring and growing if day one successfully makes over N45 billion.
