Nigeria’s cinema industry has already surpassed its total box office earnings for all of 2025, raking in ₦15.49 billion in just the first 10 months of 2026, according to data from Fusion Intelligence. A recent report from its Film Intelligence Digest, covering the week of October 30 to November 5, states that last year’s earnings were around ₦15.4 billion.
With nearly two months still to go this year, the industry is on track to set a new record if the trend continues. Despite five new film releases, the week saw cinemas earning about ₦206.4 million from roughly 32,000 tickets sold, marking a 15% decline compared to the previous week.
The top four films at the box office were returning titles, indicating that audiences are still more drawn to familiar favorites rather than the new offerings.
Agbara Nla joins Nollywood’s highest-grossing films
This week, one of the standout stories in Nigerian cinema was the continued success of Agbara Nla: The Return, which has topped the box office for the fifth week in a row. The film brought in ₦39.5 million from 6,773 viewers, pushing its total earnings to ₦462.2 million with 77,440 tickets sold. It has now outperformed The Wedding Party, which previously held the record with ₦452.3 million, securing a spot among Nollywood’s top 10 highest-grossing films, according to Fusion Intelligence.
An analysis of its earnings shows that the majority comes from Lagos, which accounts for 54.8% of the total revenue, or about ₦253.3 million. Oyo follows with 11.1% (around ₦51.3 million), and Abuja contributes 10.5% (about ₦48.5 million). The film has also made an impact in Greater Accra, Ghana, which added 6.7% to its earnings, with Ogun at 5.1% and other Nigerian states like Kwara, Osun, Ondo, Rivers, Delta, and Edo contributing smaller percentages.
Similar read: Here are 10 women dominating Nollywood’s box office in 2026
While Lagos remains the film’s strongest audience base, it’s clear that Agbara Nla is resonating with viewers across Nigeria and even in parts of Ghana. This success puts the film in the same league as other major hits like Behind the Scenes, Everybody Loves Jenifa, and Omo Ghetto: The Saga.
In its latest week, Agbara Nla maintained its lead at the box office, experiencing just a 16% decline in earnings compared to the week before. Interestingly, its revenue on Wednesday even rose by 9% to reach ₦4 million. The film accounted for a notable 19.1% of the week’s total box office revenue and 21.1% of all ticket sales.
New box office releases keep cinemas busy
Tele X Zikora held onto second place with ₦34.4 million this week, bringing its total earnings to ₦75.5 million. While its weekly revenue dropped by 17%, it still managed to outperform Agbara Nla on three days: Friday, Monday, and Tuesday. It also had the biggest release in terms of locations, showing in 89 spots.
Among the new films, Phoenix Fury had the best opening, earning ₦10.6 million from 1,693 ticket sales across 68 locations. Maybe… Maybe Not closely followed with ₦10.4 million from 48 locations, achieving the highest average earnings per location among the new entries. Wire Transfer made ₦7.7 million, while The Cleaner and Arnie & Barney earned ₦3.7 million and ₦3.2 million, respectively.
Looking beyond this week’s numbers, the overall trend indicates a strong year for cinema attendance and ticket sales. However, it is still unclear how much of this growth is due to higher ticket prices, more admissions, or more successful local films. The final figures for 2026 will shed light on what drove this impressive performance.
Read as well: ‘Call of My Life’ becomes first Nollywood film to cross ₦600 million at the 2026 box office
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