Dr. Ope Banwo, has condemned celebrated Nollywood movie producer, Kunle Afolayan for criticizing the duo of Funke Akindele and Toyin Abraham over their production style.
It would be recalled that Afolayan recently took a dig at Akindele and Abraham over their marketing style.
Dr Ope Banwo
Afolayan had been quoted saying, “I can’t be dancing around to sell ₦1 billion and only walk away with ₦10 million”, indirectly criticizing Akindele and Abraham who have become quite popular for racking in huge bucks from releasing their movies in the cinema.
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Reacting to Afolayan, Banwo called for an intelligent and broader view of the issue, stating that beyond the ego, the banter, and the social media smoke, the fact remains that Nollywood’s box office in the last few years has been dominated by women.
Explaining further, he noted that Box Office is not where producers are supposed to make all their profits, adding that it is only one revenue stream, just the most visible one.
He added thus, “Firstly, film profitability is a full ecosystem: sponsorship, brand placements, licensing, streaming deals, syndication, international distribution, airline deals, TV deals, merchandising, music rights, sequels, franchises, and long-tail monetization.”
“Secondly, if you personally don’t like the cinema promo grind, that’s your choice. No problem. But don’t ridicule the people who are doing what works for their market—and winning with it.”
Banwo noted that it is easy to sneer at hustle when you are not the one depending on that hustle to recoup investment. It’s easy to look down on “dancing” when your model is built around pre-funding and institutional buyers like Netflix paying you in advance of production
Also, he noted that the women being mocked are operating in the open market—where the audience is the boss, and the cinema is the battlefield.
Banwo urged the public to desist from ridiculing them, adding that they should be studying, celebrating and building case studies around them and replicating the playbook.
In any serious industry, pace-setters are protected, studied, and replicated. You don’t downplay your highest performers. You clone them.
Banwo added that if he were running a guild, Funke, Toyin, Mo, Kemi, Jade and the rest would be mandatory masterclass material—not gossip material. Because when a small group of women account for almost the entire Top 20 box-office list, that’s no longer entertainment.
He noted that Akindele leads an all-women takeover of the top 10 highest films of all time and 17 out of the top 20 all time bestsellers. Banwo noted that instead of petty ridicule, female movie producers should actually be given flowers, respect, proper recognition and not sentiments or pity. According to him, the numbers are no longer whispering. They are shouting.
“When someone mocks the marketing hustle—dancing, skits, street promo, fan engagement, cinema tours—as if it is beneath them, I just laugh. Because that statement alone reveals a misunderstanding of how the film business works.
“Women own Nollywood’s box office period. Not by vibes. Not by sympathy. Not by Twitter trends.
“But by tickets sold. By cinemas filled.
By billions in sales banked.”
Speaking further, he added, “I was stunned to realize that all top 10 highest-grossing Nollywood cinema films of all time were produced by women. Specifically three women: Funke Akindele, Toyin Abraham and Mo Abudu.
“And if that wasn’t loud enough, 17 out of the top 20 all time cinema movies in Nollywood also came from women-led productions.
“That’s not coincidence. That’s total domination by the amazons of Nollywood and someone should be celebrating these hardcore ladies,” Banwo said.
Analysing the achievements of female Nollywood producers, Banwo noted that Akindele leads the pack. He described her as the undisputed, the undefeated box-office generalissimo in the last five years, crediting her for building franchise with three different successful movies. Banwo placed Abraham as the second on the success ladder, adding that she muscled her way into the billion-naira club with pure commercial instincts, audience connection, and street-smart understanding of what actually moves the market.
Banwo stated that Abraham is not just Funke’s running mate, adding that she is making legitimate efforts to get to the top of the Nollywood’s box office mountain.
Also on the successful female Nollywood movie producers list is Mo Abudu who according to Banwo didn’t just produced films; but built systems: studios, pipelines, global partnerships, and a production infrastructure that plugged Nollywood into the world.
Banwo acknowledged a full squad of women quietly restructuring Nollywood from multiple angles notably Kemi Adetiba, Jade Osiberu, Omoni Oboli, Ruth Kadiri, Tope Oshin, and Wumi Toriola.
Banwo commended the listed producers starting that, “These women were not handed functional film empires. They built in chaos. They marketed in a tough cinema ecosystem. They raised money for movies in a country where creative financing is trench warfare. They promoted films in heat, rain, traffic, and online insults. Yet they still showed up,” he concluded.
First, box office is not where you’re supposed to make all your profits. It’s only one revenue stream—just the most visible one. Film profitability is a full ecosystem: sponsorship, brand placements, licensing, streaming deals, syndication, international distribution, airline deals, TV deals, merchandising, music rights, sequels, franchises, and long-tail monetization.
Second, if you personally don’t like the cinema promo grind, that’s your choice. No problem. But don’t ridicule the people who are doing what works for their market—and winning with it.
Because let’s be honest: it is easy to sneer at hustle when you are not the one depending on that hustle to recoup investment. It’s easy to look down on “dancing” when your model is built around pre-funding and institutional buyers like Netflix paying you in advance of production
But the women being mocked are operating in the open market—where the audience is the boss, and the cinema is the battlefield.
And guess what?They are winning.
So instead of ridicule, the industry should be doing the sensible thing:Study them. Celebrate them. Build case studies around them. Replicate the playbook.
In any serious industry, pace-setters are protected, studied, and replicated. You don’t downplay your highest performers. You clone them.
If I were running a guild, Funke, Toyin, Mo, Kemi, Jade and the rest would be mandatory masterclass material—not gossip material.
Because when a small group of women account for almost the entire Top 20 box-office list, that’s no longer entertainment.
That’s a business signal. The women have taken over without doing any wives on strike. So today, I bring flowers.
Flowers for the women who carried Nollywood cinema on their backs.
Flowers for the women who turned hustle into franchises.
Flowers for the women who showed that audiences reward effort.
Flowers for the women who proved that consistency beats forming.
This is not feminism. This is scoreboard. And the scoreboard says:
Top 10 highest selling films of all time: Women 10, Men 10
Top 29 highest of all time , women
Women took 17, men 3
If that doesn’t command respect, nothing will.
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