Nollywood has secured a new Guinness World Record after more than 51,000 people gathered at Tafawa Balewa Square in Lagos to watch the Nigerian film Black Market during a historic screening.
The record-breaking event took place on Saturday, September 26, with Guinness World Records confirming 51,000 viewers as the qualifying attendance for the largest audience at a film screening in a single location.
The figure surpassed the previous record of 43,624 people, set in 2015 when the Filipino film Felix Manalo was screened at the Philippine Arena in the Philippines.
Organisers had initially set a target of 50,000 simultaneous viewers, meaning the confirmed attendance exceeded the goal by more than 1,000 people.
Thousands of movie lovers began arriving at Tafawa Balewa Square from the afternoon, with long queues forming around the venue before the gates opened at about 2pm.
The main screening was scheduled for 7pm after a red-carpet session and a programme featuring music, food, games and other entertainment activities.
Lagos State Deputy Governor Obafemi Hamzat was among the dignitaries present at the event, alongside Commissioner for Tourism, Arts and Culture Toke Benson and several prominent Nollywood personalities.
Actors and filmmakers including Lateef Adedimeji, Linda Ejiofor-Suleiman, Kunle Remi, Stan Nze, Gabriel Afolayan and Kunle Afolayan were also present at the screening.
Hamzat announced that the event attracted about 64,000 people, but Guinness World Records used 51,000 as the qualifying figure because the record required viewers to remain for the full screening.
The announcement of the confirmed record was met with cheers, celebrations and fireworks at the Lagos venue.
Black Market is a crime thriller produced by Rixel Studios in collaboration with FilmOne Studios, Signet Ring Studios and Switch Visuals Production.
The film was directed by Fatimah Binta Gimsay and co-written by Gimsay and Abdul Tijani-Ahmed, with a storyline centred on five women involved in a cross-border smuggling operation.
Their lives become complicated after the daughter of one of the women is kidnapped, setting the stage for the events explored in the film.
The cast includes Linda Ejiofor-Suleiman, Lateef Adedimeji, Omowunmi Dada, Scarlet Gomez, Teniola Aladese, Susan Pwajok, Itele D Icon and Uzor Arukwe.
The record attempt had been announced months before the screening, with the filmmakers initially planning to bring at least 50,000 people together for one simultaneous viewing.
In August, the organisers described the planned screening as an effort to showcase the scale of Nigeria's creative industry while attempting to surpass the long-standing Felix Manalo record.
The event was organised with support from the Lagos State Government through the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, alongside several commercial and entertainment partners.
The Guinness World Record achievement adds another international milestone to Nigeria's entertainment industry and places a Nollywood production at the centre of a large-scale global record.
It also demonstrates the growing ability of Nigerian filmmakers and entertainment companies to organise major audience-driven events beyond conventional cinema premieres.
For the Black Market team, what began as an ambitious attempt to gather 50,000 viewers ultimately became a confirmed record-breaking screening with more than 51,000 qualifying attendees.
The achievement was subsequently celebrated by FilmOne, which described the event as a moment that made history after more than 51,000 people gathered around one screen in Lagos.
With the record now confirmed, the September 26 screening of Black Market stands as a notable milestone for Nollywood and Nigeria's wider creative economy.