Nigerian filmmakers Toyin Abraham, Niyi Akinmolayan, and Ini Edo accuse cinemas of sabotage, citing unfair screening times and ticketing misconduct

Nigerian filmmakers Toyin Abraham, Niyi Akinmolayan, and Ini Edo have accused cinema operators of deliberately undermining their movies through unfavourable screening times and alleged ticketing misconduct.

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Abraham, whose film “Oversabi Aunty” is currently showing, claimed that some exhibitors assigned her movie early-morning and late-night slots, while redirecting paying audiences to other films.

“They sell another ticket to people and take them to my movie hall,” Abraham said, adding that the scheduling practices have negatively affected her film’s commercial performance.

“Some cinemas will give you 10 a.m. and 9 p.m. A 10 a.m. showtime, how do you expect it to sell?”

Similarly, Akinmolayan accused cinemas of advertising his film “Colours of Fire”, selling tickets, and then failing to screen it.

He stressed that while cinemas are free to set schedules, selling tickets for a film and then refusing to show it is unethical. He warned that he would publicly name offending cinemas if the practice continued.

“If by end of day you don’t fix up, I am going to name all the cinemas that have Colours of Fire on their website, collected money from people and are refusing to show them,” Akinmolayan wrote on X.

Ini Edo, debuting as a film producer with “A Very Dirty Christmas”, described the experience as emotionally exhausting. She shared videos of moviegoers complaining about cinema practices, noting that despite her investment and commitment, she faced intentional frustration.

“Nigerian cinemas, this has been exhausting,” Edo said. “But God is bigger than every barrier, bigger than gatekeeping and intimidation.”

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The filmmakers’ complaints have ignited discussions online, with many in the industry calling for greater transparency and accountability from cinema operators to protect both creators and audiences.