A video showing Nollywood actress and filmmaker, Funke Akindele, appearing to ignore her colleague, Toyin Abraham, at a movie premiere has gone viral.
The incident occurred on Sunday at the premiere of Iyabo Ojo’s film, The Return of Arinzo, held at the Balmoral Event Centre in Lagos.
In the circulating video, Abraham is seen attempting to greet Akindele, but the latter does not respond and keeps her gaze elsewhere.
Earlier, Abraham had greeted Ojo, Mercy Aigbe and other colleagues before moving away from the table. While Ojo and Aigbe acknowledged her greeting, Akindele appeared to deliberately ignore her.
The development comes weeks after Akindele called for stronger support within the Nigerian film industry, urging practitioners to prioritise collaboration over rivalry.
She made this known at the premiere of Timini Egbuson’s latest movie, Love and New Notes, where she addressed guests and cast members after the screening.
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Speaking on stage, she said, “We all need to come out to support Nollywood. We are all one. There’s no competition, it’s called collaboration. As long as you put in the hard work and dedication, you will all reach the top.”
Akindele also commended the efforts that went into the production of the film, applauding both the creative direction and performances delivered by the cast.
“Congratulations, Timini and Kayode (Kasum). This is the second time I am attending your movie premiere, and it’s better. I love the shots, storytelling, costumes, lighting and acting,” she said. She reserved special praise for some of the actors, noting their growth and versatility. “Eniola (Badmus) is my good friend. I call her a comedian, but here, I saw proper acting. Kudos to the director. To my brother Odunlade (Adekola), I saw you in ‘Ginger’, and I have seen you here. You are deep,” she stated.
