The Story⚡
One new Nollywood film just arrived and took second place at the box office in its opening week, finishing ahead of two other fresh releases. The ranking raises a simple question: what drew audiences to 19 so quickly?
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The answer lies in a story that feels both personal and familiar. 19 opens a window onto the early internet years in Nigeria and the pressures that pushed some young people into cybercrime. Written and directed by Tola Odunsi, it follows a brilliant young man whose circumstances and choices collide with a new technology, and audiences responded by placing it second on the chart in its first week. The latest rankings still have Hollywood’s Spider-Man: Brand New Day firmly in first place, while 19 sits ahead of the new Hollywood release Runner and the Lagos thriller One Gidi Night. Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey continues its longer run. Here is how the leading titles performed.
5. One Gidi Night (Week 1) – ₦18.47 million
One Gidi Night is a neo-noir crime thriller set over a single night in Lagos. A good man is pushed to the edge and forced into impossible choices to survive. Reviews describe it as a story about love, sacrifice and desperation, and it names real Lagos-axis locations such as Sangotedo, Awoyaya and Lakowe as its characters move through the night.
James Abinibi wrote, directed and produced the film. He is the founder of the production company Rockbottom Flix, and his earlier films include Mentally, Honourable, The Call and Miss PJ. The cast includes Gabriel Afolayan, Uzor Arukwe, Wumi Toriola, Ibrahim Yekini, Idia Aisien and Kelvin Ikeduba. FilmOne Entertainment distributes it.
One Gidi Night opened in cinemas nationwide on September 11, 2026. Its cumulative box office is ₦18.47 million.
4. Runner (Week 1) – ₦20.67 million
Runner is an action comedy about Hank Malone, a former Army Special Forces soldier who works as a “runner”, moving legal and illegal items for clients. He is given a job to deliver a healthy liver to a sick girl. Along the way, he must escort the man who brought the organ while armed pursuers try to take it.
Scott Waugh directed the film from a script by Miles Hubley and Tommy White, which appeared on the 2023 Black List of best-liked unproduced screenplays. Alan Ritchson stars as Hank and also produced, alongside Todd Garner, Mark Fasano, and Jeffrey Greenstein. Owen Wilson plays Ben Bishop. Rodrigo Santoro, Leila George, Adriana Barraza, Sullivan Stapleton, Peta Sergeant, and Geraldine Hakewill complete the main cast. It runs for 98 minutes.
Runner was released on September 11, 2026, and its cumulative box office in Nigeria is ₦20.67 million.
3. The Odyssey (Week 9) – ₦30.11 million
Christopher Nolan’s adaptation of Homer’s epic poem follows Odysseus, king of Ithaca, on his long journey home after years of war. Nolan wrote and directed the film and produced it with Emma Thomas, and Universal Pictures and Syncopy produced it. Hoyte van Hoytema handled the cinematography and Ludwig Göransson composed the score. The film was shot with new IMAX film technology across Italy, Iceland, Greece, Morocco, and Scotland.
Matt Damon plays Odysseus, and Anne Hathaway plays Penelope. Tom Holland plays Telemachus, Zendaya plays Athena, and Charlize Theron plays Circe. Robert Pattinson, Lupita Nyong’o, Samantha Morton, Mia Goth, and Jon Bernthal are also in the cast.
The Odyssey was released on July 17, 2026. Its cumulative box office in Nigeria is ₦846.25 million.
2. “19” (Week 1) – ₦31.86 million
19 looks at the roots of cybercrime in Nigeria through one man’s life. Ndubuisi Madueke is born into hardship, and his talent runs into blocked legitimate routes just as the country’s early internet era begins. A wealthy neighbourhood figure named Usuanlele guides him into online fraud. The story opens with Ndubuisi already caught and facing extradition, then looks back on how he got there. Writer and director Tola Odunsi has said the film explains the circumstances behind the crime without excusing it.
Stan Nze plays Ndubuisi. He leads a cast that includes Sola Sobowale, Bisola Aiyeola, Deyemi Okanlawon, Ademola Adedoyin, William Benson and Charles Okafor, with Boma Akpore and Tayo Faniran also in the film. Odunsi wrote and directed it and produced it with Bola Atta. UBA’s Red TV backed the production, and Nile Entertainment distributes it.
19 opened in cinemas on September 11, 2026. Its cumulative box office is ₦31.86 million.
1. Spider-Man: Brand New Day (Week 7) – ₦110.11 million
Four years after a spell made the world forget Peter Parker, he protects New York City alone as Spider-Man. His powers begin to change, and he faces a telepathic threat tied to a secret held by the Department of Damage Control.
Destin Daniel Cretton directed the film from a script by Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers. Kevin Feige, Amy Pascal, Avi Arad and Rachel O’Connor produced it, and Michael Giacchino composed the score. Tom Holland stars alongside Zendaya, Sadie Sink, Jacob Batalon, Jon Bernthal, Florence Pugh, Tramell Tillman, Marisa Tomei and Mark Ruffalo. It runs for 145 minutes.
It was released on July 31, 2026. In Nigeria, it opened with ₦725.89 million from 101,706 admissions, previews included, and its cumulative box office now stands at ₦2.28 billion.
In Summary
19 has marked a clear opening statement for Nollywood on the current chart, while longer-running titles continue to draw audiences and other new releases establish their footholds. The coming weeks will show how these films hold or build on their early figures. Catch them on the big screen while they are still in cinemas.
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