Nigerians Spent NGN 402 Mn On Movies In June; A Tale Of Hate For The Economic Situation & Love Of A Good Time

The Cinema Exhibitors Association of Nigeria (CEAN) has just revealed that Nigerians paid a total of NGN 402 Mn to see movies in cinemas across the country in the month of June alone. And this is in spite of the poor state of the economy.

Nigerians are far too willing to decry the poor state of affairs with regard to the country’s economic fortunes, and rightfully so too, but when it’s time to relax, they sure spare no expense and have no trouble suspending their grievances.

It seems Nigerians are relentless when it comes to complaining about all the things that aren’t working but they never pass up on a chance to chill. And that’s because it has just been revealed that Nigerians paid nearly half a billion naira to see movies in the month of June alone. 

Don’t be alarmed; that’s even a few millions shy of the well over NGN 500 Mn that was spent on movies the previous month, and the most recent figure could have comfortably eclipsed that if there were records for the second week of June.

On Tuesday, 2 July 2019, the Cinema Exhibitors Association of Nigeria (CEAN) released movie statistics for the month of June 2019 and according to box office records, Nigerian moviegoers spent a total of NGN 402.9 million in movie theatres all over the country. Interestingly, this figure was reached by considering only three weeks in the month of June. Looks they sure know how to cool off.

The month got off to a flying start with movies like ‘Aladdin’, ‘John Wick’ and ‘Godzilla’ raking in NGN 161 Mn for cinemas across the country. Between them, these three blockbuster films scored the most funds.

By the time June aged into its third week, things had slowed down somewhat and even as two other high-profile films in ‘Dark Phoenix’ and ‘Men In Black International’ hit the screens, cinema revenue dropped. Both movies drew in over NGN 44 Mn. Moviegoers spent a total of NGN 95.7 Mn during this period.

The last week of the month and the penultimate week were just a bit slow too with cinemas turning in NGN 61 Mn and NGN 85 Mn respectively during those two weeks.

Perhaps the most surprising revelation during this period was the fact that, despite all the Hollywood hype, it was actually a homemade film that caught the eye of moviegoers. Nollywood film, ‘The Bling Lagosians’ rose to an unassailable lead and by the end of the month, it was on top of the box office — something of a break from the norm and a win for the local film industry given that Hollywood films are almost always favoured by moviegoers.

Featured Image Courtesy: streettoolz.com