EbonyLife Group Chief Executive Officer, Mo Abudu, has addressed the ongoing controversy surrounding alleged bias in Nollywood cinema screenings, firmly rejecting claims that a select group works with cinema owners to block certain films from prime slots.
The debate, which has trended widely on social media, revolves around accusations that some movies are suddenly dropped from schedules, swapped for competing titles, or that cinema staff influence viewers to abandon their chosen films even after purchasing tickets.
Speaking during an interview on ARISE Television on Saturday, Abudu stated that cinema scheduling is guided strictly by business considerations and audience turnout, rather than sentiment, favoritism, or personal ties.
Veteran actress Omotola Jalade Ekeinde, who was also part of the discussion, acknowledged that the concerns have become common within the industry, with numerous filmmakers and cinema patrons sharing similar stories.
“I have heard these things, people have been saying this. Actors themselves have come out to say this has happened to them. And there are some fans too who corroborate these stories, confirming that some people convinced them to watch one movie apart from the movie they came to see,” Omotola said.
In response, Abudu clarified that such practices do not occur at EbonyLife Cinemas, stressing that the company operates strictly as a professional business.
“I can’t speak for all the cinemas, but I can certainly speak for EbonyLife Cinemas. It’s not true. We run a professional business. Our return on investment depends very heavily on making sure that we have people sitting in every single cinema,” she said.
According to her, it would be illogical for cinema operators to intentionally discourage moviegoers, as their survival depends on ticket sales.
“It is in our interest to ensure that every cinema is full. We have five cinemas in EbonyLife. We do about 30 screenings a day. That’s about 900 screenings in a month. There is plenty of space,” Abudu explained.
She also addressed complaints about limited access to peak-time slots, noting that audience turnout often determines how films are scheduled.
“Even if you say people prefer peak hours, and they get 50% of that, that’s still about 450 screenings in a month,” she said.
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Abudu added that cinemas frequently adjust screening times based on performance, especially considering the high cost of operations.
“When your film is in our cinema and it has no audience, and I am running air conditioning and paying staff, and you only have two or three people in a 100-seater cinema, by the next week we are going to have a conversation. That time slot can no longer really work,” she stated.
She emphasized that these decisions apply to all filmmakers without exception.
“There is no sentiment to anybody being in the cinema space,” Abudu added.
To further support her point, she revealed that a film produced by her daughter, Temidayo Abudu, was also pulled from cinemas after failing to attract sufficient viewers.
“My daughter had a film in the cinema last year. When it wasn’t performing, we had to move the film out. So there is no sentiment,” she said.
“This is about return on investment. It does not matter who owns the film. If I, Mo Abudu, make a film and we are not able to fill up the seats, it’s going to give way to the next film that can,” she added.
The conversation comes amid rising tension between filmmakers and cinema operators, particularly during December, Nigeria’s busiest period for movie releases.
Recently, actress and producer Toyin Abraham accused some cinemas of misrepresenting ticket sales for her film Oversabi Aunty and assigning it poor screening times. Filmmaker Niyi Akinmolayan also alleged that certain cinemas collected ticket revenue without screening his movie Colours of Fire, while actress Ini Edo described her debut production experience as exhausting, citing what she called “gatekeeping and intimidation.”