For 12 months, several Nollywood titles battled for the attention of audiences across cinemas nationwide.
A total of five Nigerian movies grossed over ₦100 million at the Nigerian box office, with one very powerful contender going over a billion naira.
All the five movies were released in the second half of 2023.
Here are the five highest-grossing Nollywood films in 2023:
A Tribe Called Judah
Number one on the list is Funke Akindele's holiday title A Tribe Called Judah, which is currently top on the Nigerian box office chart. The feature-length title surrounds five brothers: Jide Kene Achufusi as Emeka Judah, Timini Egbuson as Pere Judah, Uzee Usman as Adamu Judah, Tobi Makinde as Shina Judah, and Olumide Oworu as Ejiro Judah, who come together to rob a company to save their mother, played by Akindele.
The movie made its debut on December 15, 2023, across cinemas nationwide and recorded a total of ₦113, 274,357 million, making it the highest-grossing Nollywood opening weekend in the year.
In a short while, A Tribe Called Judah became a raven hit, with fans postings online of tickets being sold out only hours before its viewing time.
According to the Cinema Exhibitors Association of Nigeria (CEAN), it rounded up the year 2023, with a total gross of ₦854,284,939 million, which automatically makes it the highest-grossing Nollywood title for 2023 and the highest ever. The film has currently grossed over a billion naira.
Malaika
In second place is Malaika, produced by Toyin Abraham, it centres around the agony and trials of a couple played by Abraham and Emeke Ike struggling to bear children.
Between December 22-24, 2023, it recorded a total of ₦33,918,250 which made it the second highest-grossing Nollywood opening weekend, as it eventually rounded up the year 2023, with a gross of exactly ₦160,995,869 million.
Ada Omo Daddy
Mercy Aigbe's second cinematic feature made its way to the third highest-grossing Nollywood film for 2023, despite being released on the same day as A Tribe Called Judah.
Ada Omo Daddy opened up at the cinema with a record of ₦27,620,446 million and then its final weekend in December recorded a gross of ₦21 million, which brings its total for 2023 to ₦133,663,236 million.
Orisa
Despite the competition from Hollywood blockbusters, Barbie and Oppenheimer, its opening weekbroke the record as the biggest epic opening of the year with ₦27.6 million. In seven days, Orisa had hit a total of ₦100 million at the Nigerian box office, which was the first 2023 title to record such numbers.
After screening across cinemas nationwide for 14 weeks, Orisa made its exit from the box office charts recorded by the Cinema Exhibitors Association of Nigeria (CEAN) with a total gross of ₦127.89 million, making it the fourth highest-grossing Nollywood title for 2023.
Merry Men 3: Nemesis
The movie is produced by comedian Ay Makun, after a successful run of the first two titles from the franchise.
Merry Men 3: Nemesis made its debut on October 13, 2023, and achieved ₦100 million after spending only four weeks at the Nigerian cinemas. According to CEAN, the crime comedy has a total gross of ₦118,491,970. It is also expected to make its move to Netflix later this month.
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