For the third year in a row, Funke Akindele has begun the road to December with a competition against herself.
In 2024, characters from A Tribe Called Judah and the Jenifa franchise faced off in a tug of war over which world would return to cinemas. Jenifa won. In 2025, Akindele took audiences behind the scenes of a production set for a fashion runway-style reveal of Behind The Scenes. And this year, the filmmaker has staged a relay race involving her previous films and the possibility of their sequels, only for an original title, The Four: No One Fights Alone, to cross the finish line.
The elaborate videos have increasingly made the announcement of Akindele’s annual December film an event of its own. Also, they play on the Nigerian box office fact that Akindele is now largely competing with records she previously set herself.
In September 2024, Akindele used a tug-of-war video to tease two possibilities (3 if you count the Omo Ghetto cameo) for her next release: A Tribe Called Judah Part 2 or Everybody Loves Jenifa. The latter emerged victorious, bringing back one of the filmmaker’s most recognisable characters for a December 13 release.
It entered a particularly busy festive corridor. Mercy Aigbe-produced Thin Line also opened on December 13, while Toyin Abraham‘s Alakada: Bad and Boujee and Ayo Makun‘s The Waiter followed on December 20. The Nigerian-Ghanaian One Night Guests arrived on Christmas Day.
Some notable Hollywood titles made their way to cinemas as well. Kraven The Hunter opened on December 13, followed by Mufasa: The Lion King and Sonic the Hedgehog 3 on December 20, with Nosferatu arriving December 25.
Everybody Loves Jenifa nevertheless finished its run with 1.88 billion naira at the Nigerian box office, becoming another record-breaking release for Akindele and setting a new target for whatever she would do next.
Akindele changed the presentation in 2025. Instead of characters literally fighting over the next release, an October announcement took the form of a fashion runway staged around the behind-the-scenes activity of a production, populated by cast members and entertainment personalities. The title eventually revealed was fittingly Behind the Scenes.
The film opened on December 12, once again placing Akindele at the centre of a crowded Christmas calendar. Wale Ojo‘s This Is Not a Nollywood Movie had opened a week earlier, while Ini Edo-produced A Very Dirty Christmas followed on December 16, Oversabi Aunty on December 18 and Niyi Akinmolayan‘s Colours of Fire on December 24.
International titles included Avatar: Fire and Ash and David on December 19, followed by Anaconda on December 26.
In performance, Behind the Scenes went considerably further with new records. Its 2.76 billion naira box-office total surpassed Everybody Loves Jenifa, continuing a run in which a new Akindele blockbuster has repeatedly displaced an older one from the top.
The result leaves Akindele with three titles among the five highest-grossing Nollywood films of all time heading into another December campaign.
This year’s reveal arrived earlier, in the second week in August. Akindele returned to the idea of her films competing for the next spot on the calendar, this time through a relay race. Her previous titles and potential sequels were again part of the joke, but none ultimately won. Instead, the baton passed to an original film in The Four: No One Fights Alone.
The announcement also doubled as an introduction to some of its ensemble, with Funke Akindele (Labake), Richard Mofe-Damijo (Chief Osusuowo), Bisola Aiyeola (Todun), Chioma Chukwuka (Somto) and Waje (Esosa) appearing in the video. Character posters have since offered another look at the actors we will meet when the film opens on December 11.
Written, directed and produced by Akindele, The Four follows Esosa and three women who fight for the future of a young man they love. The film is being positioned as an emotionally charged drama about friendship, motherhood, resilience, loyalty and sacrifice, moving between a small community and the city.
Its expansive cast also includes Timini Egbuson (Sossick), Lateef Adedimeji (Rotimi), Ali Nuhu (Baala), Uzor Arukwe (Calistus), Ronke Oshodi Oke, Antar Laniyan and Wunmi Toriola (Madame Abike), alongside Afrobeats artiste Shoday (Oba) and entertainment personalities Samuel Banks, Kolapo Omotosho and Ayomide Iwasokun.
The film continues Akindele’s relationship with FilmOne Entertainment, which remains the distributor behind her theatrical releases.
Looking Ahead of December Box Office
The competition around The Four is only beginning to take shape and there is still plenty of time for the calendar to become more crowded.
The Secret Lives of Baba Segi’s Wives, the screen adaptation of Lola Shoneyin’s novel, is currently scheduled for December 4, a week before Akindele’s film. Hollywood tentpoles including Dune and Doomsday are also slated for December, while another likely year-end release from Toyin Abraham would continue a pattern that has seen the two filmmakers bring major titles to cinemas during the same festive period.
Funke Akindele’s releases so far include episodes from the second season of Aiyetoro Town, while Omo Ghetto: The Saga has been rereleased on YouTube, and Where is Mr Right lands on Prime Video in mid August.
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