Black Market Ranks Second at Nigerian Box Office After Record

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Black Market has turned its record-breaking screening into a strong cinema start. The Nollywood crime thriller, starring Lateef Adedimeji , ranked second at the Nigerian box office in its first weekend on general release. BusinessDay, citing Nigeria Box Office figures, reports that the film made ₦16 million over the weekend, taking its cumulative total to ₦19.92 million. Shakara Square also ranks it second for the weekend. Who beat it Only Agbara Nla: The Return earned more. BusinessDay says the faith-based film grossed ₦99.8 million for the weekend, taking its total to ₦170.58 million. We covered that run in our Agbara Nla box office report . Kamo State's Starlomo came third with ₦14.6 million (₦60.54 million total). Spider-Man: Brand New Day was fourth with ₦12.6 million and a cumulative ₦2.378 billion, which BusinessDay says keeps it as Nigeria's highest-grossing title. Avengers: Endgame: Encore rounded out the top five with ₦11.8 million. That left three Nigerian productions ahead of two Hollywood titles on the weekend chart. Black Market at a glance Weekend gross: ₦16 million (BusinessDay / Nigeria Box Office) Cumulative: ₦19.92 million (BusinessDay / Nigeria Box Office) Weekend rank: No. 2 Director: Fatimah Binta Gimsay Producers: Nora Awolowo and Nicole Ofoegbu Distributor: FilmOne Entertainment Cinema release: October 1, 2026 (limited nationwide run) The Guinness World Record The film went into cinemas with a headline already behind it. On September 26, its screening at Tafawa Balewa Square in Lagos drew 51,258 people, BusinessDay reports. Guinness World Records recognised it as the largest audience at a film screening in a single location. OYA Magazine says a Guinness adjudicator confirmed the record at the event. It beat the previous mark of 43,624, set at the 2015 premiere of Felix Manalo at the Philippine Arena. President Bola Tinubu later congratulated Damilola Osikoya of Switch Visuals and Nora Awolowo of Rixel Studios. Read more in our report on the record screening . Shakara Square argues that the record means Black Market did not enter cinemas as an unfamiliar title: "The film has moved from making headlines for its record-breaking feat to demonstrating its ability to attract paying cinema audiences." The story and cast Black Market follows five market women running a smuggling operation across the Nigerian border. BusinessDay adds that their operation is disrupted after one of their daughters is kidnapped. OYA lists the cast as Lateef Adedimeji, Linda Ejiofor-Suleiman, Omowunmi Dada, Uzor Arukwe and Susan Pwajok. Fatimah Binta Gimsay directs, and Nora Awolowo and Nicole Ofoegbu produce, with production credits to Rixel Studios, FilmOne Studios and Signet Ring. Adedimeji's double presence Adedimeji is also in Starlomo, the film directly behind Black Market on the chart. BusinessDay lists him in that cast alongside Kamo State, Ibrahim Chatta, Odunlade Adekola and Abiola Adebayo, which means he has two films in the weekend top three. A record-breaking rival The film that kept Black Market off the top spot is having a historic run of its own. Distributor Nile Group said Agbara Nla: The Return recorded the biggest non-December Nollywood opening weekend of all time, the biggest October opening weekend and the biggest opening ever for a faith-based film, Brand Icon Image reports. In the distributor's comparison, only Everybody Loves Jenifa and Behind the Scene opened bigger among Nollywood titles. Starlomo, the third-placed film, was released on September 25. BusinessDay says Kamo State co-produced it with Muyiwa Idowu and Barbara Babarinsa, and FilmOne handled distribution, as it does for Black Market. BusinessDay frames the weekend as a win for local cinema, with Nigerian productions dominating the chart and outpacing major Hollywood releases. What's next Shakara Square says the next test is a strong second weekend, which would show whether the opening reflects lasting interest or curiosity about the record. Word of mouth will matter. More Nollywood titles land on October 23 and 30, including No Fury and Phoenix Fury. Follow our film coverage and Nigeria hub for the latest box office. Sources: BusinessDay | Shakara Square | Brand Icon Image | OYA Magazine