Nollywood breaks Guinness World Record with 51,000-person movie screening in Lagos

Nollywood has set a new Guinness World Record for the largest audience gathering for a movie screening, after more than 51,000 Nigerians gathered at the Tafawa Balewa Square in Lagos to watch the crime thriller, Black Market.

The feat was confirmed on the screen at the event on Saturday night, with the GWR official confirming the feat by announcing that more than 51,000 people had attended the screening.

FilmOne, the film’s distributor, said in a statement shared on its social media platforms on Saturday that the gathering had officially set a world record.

“51,000+ people. One screen. One moment that just made history,” FilmOne said.

“We’ve officially set a WORLD RECORD for the Largest Audience Gathering Ever for a Movie Screening.”

The distributor added, “Nigeria, we didn’t just watch a movie. WE MADE HISTORY.”

According to our correspondent, the Tafawa Balewa Square was packed with movie lovers who turned up for the screening, with hundreds of attendees earlier trooping into the venue ahead of the event.

The screening was initially organised as an attempt to set a Guinness World Record, with organisers targeting an audience of 50,000 people at a single location.

The gates opened at 2pm, followed by a red-carpet session at about 3pm, while the main screening was scheduled for between 7pm and 8.30pm.

• Alumni honour IG Disu with lifetime award
• Police bust Lagos syndicate over N20bn goods diversion
• Layeni-Dawodu colloquium seeks intellectual approach to public engagement

The venue recorded a heavy turnout, with long queues stretching towards the TBS roundabout as movie lovers arrived for the event.

The event also featured music, food and games, while celebrities and other personalities were spotted at the venue.

Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Obafemi Hamzat, arrived at the venue at about 8.50pm. Among the celebrities spotted at the event were Gabriel Afolayan, Real Warri Pikin and Tomi Ojo.

Black Market is produced by Rixel Studios, Signet Ring Studios and FilmOne Studios, and distributed by FilmOne.

The film is directed by Fatimah Binta Gimsay and produced by Nora Awolowo.

It stars Omowunmi Dada, Lateef Adedimeji, Linda Ejiofor-Suleiman, Scarlet Gomez, Teniola Aladese, Susan Pwajok, Ibrahim Yekini, popularly known as Itele D Icon, and Uzor Arukwe, among others.

The crime thriller follows five market women involved in a cross-border smuggling operation amid fuel scarcity and economic pressure.

The plot takes a dramatic turn after the daughter of one of the women is kidnapped.

The event was supported by the Lagos State Government through the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, alongside several corporate partners.