Nollywood Black Market Makes History as 51,000 Viewers Set New Guinness World Record

Nollywood has recorded another major global milestone after more than 51,000 people gathered at Tafawa Balewa Square in Lagos to watch the crime thriller Black Market in a record breaking film screening. The screening, which took place on Saturday, September 26, was organised as an attempt to break the Guinness World Records title for the largest audience at a film screening in a single location.

Guinness World Records officially recognised 51,000 people as the qualifying attendance, surpassing the previous record of 43,624 viewers set in 2015 during a screening of the Filipino film Felix Manalo at the Philippine Arena. Although the event reportedly attracted an overall crowd of about 64,000 people, the official Guinness figure was based on viewers who remained at the screening from the beginning of the movie until the end.

The announcement was met with cheers, celebrations and fireworks at the Lagos venue as organisers and movie lovers marked the achievement. The event was designed as more than a conventional movie premiere. Gates opened at 2pm, with the red carpet beginning around 3pm before the main screening later in the evening. Music, food, games and other entertainment activities were also part of the programme.

Black Market is a crime thriller directed by Fatimah Binta Gimsay and written by Gimsay alongside Abdul Tijani Ahmed. The film follows five women caught up in a cross-border smuggling operation during a period of fuel scarcity and economic hardship. Their lives become more complicated when the daughter of one of the women is kidnapped. The movie features a cast including Lateef Adedimeji, Linda Ejiofor Suleiman, Omowunmi Dada, Scarlet Gomez, Teniola Aladese, Susan Pwajok, Ibrahim Yekini, popularly known as Itele D Icon and Uzor Arukwe.

The record attempt had been announced months before the premiere, with organisers initially setting a target of 50,000 viewers at a single location. That target was eventually exceeded, with the qualifying attendance rising above the previous world record. The achievement adds another international milestone to Nollywood’s growing profile, while also highlighting the scale of audience interest in Nigerian cinema. With more than 51,000 viewers officially recognised for the screening, Black Market has now entered the Guinness World Records for the largest audience at a film screening in a single location.