Funke Akindele’s ‘Behind The Scenes’ film hits ₦1.77bn at box office

Nollywood actor and filmmaker, Funke Akindele, has recorded another major commercial triumph as her latest cinema release, Behind The Scenes, grossed ₦1.77 billion at the Nigerian box office, further reinforcing her dominance in the country’s film industry.

The milestone was announced by the film’s distributor, FilmOne Entertainment, in a post shared on X (formerly Twitter) on Monday.

“Celebrating yet another incredible milestone and we’re so sure we wouldn’t have done this without you and your love.

“Behind The Scenes hits a whopping ₦1.77 billion. Thank you to everyone for the love and support so far,” FilmOne said

According to the distributor, the film has now generated ₦1,767,305,878, emerging as the number one film of the weekend in West Africa, with box office figures still rising as of 4pm on January 5, 2025.

“THANK YOU WEST AFRICA. NO.1 FILM OF THE WEEKEND… AND COUNTING,” FilmOne added, noting that the earnings were verified figures.

Behind The Scenes stars Scarlet Gomez in the lead role and features an ensemble cast including Funke Akindele, Iyabo Ojo, Destiny Etiko, Tobi Bakre, Uche Montana, Uzor Arukwe, Ini Dima-Okojie, Adebowale ‘Mr Macaroni’, Ibrahim Chatta, Kamo State, as well as reality TV stars Handi and Wanni Danbaki, among others.

The film centres on the theme of black tax, exploring the social, emotional and financial pressures faced by individuals expected to support extended family members, a subject that has struck a chord with audiences across Nigeria and the wider West African market.

News had earlier reported that Behind The Scenes crossed the ₦1 billion mark at the box office, recording ₦1,109,463,846, a feat that placed it among the highest-grossing Nollywood films of all time.

Following the milestone, FilmOne described Akindele as “the only director to cross ₦1B+ at the box office three different times” and “Nollywood’s highest-grossing producer of all time,” underscoring her consistent commercial appeal.

The performance of Behind The Scenes adds to a growing list of box office successes for Akindele, whose earlier film, Everybody Loves Jenifa, reportedly earned over ₦40 million on its opening day, crossed ₦355 million within its first week, exceeded ₦700 million by its second weekend, and became the fastest Nollywood film to reach ₦1 billion domestically.

With Behind The Scenes continuing its strong cinema run, industry watchers say the film’s success reflects a combination of relatable storytelling, strategic marketing and Akindele’s enduring popularity with mainstream audiences.