Organisers of the 10th African Magic Viewers’ Choice Awards (AMVCAs) have been lambasted by fans of actress, Funke Akindele after she failed to clinch an award over the weekend.
Organisers of the 10th African Magic Viewers’ Choice Awards (AMVCAs) have been lambasted by fans of actress, Funke Akindele after she failed to clinch an award over the weekend.
The 10th edition of the Africa Magic Viewers’ Choice Awards (AMVCA), hosted at the Eko Hotel and Suites in Lagos on Saturday, continues to spark reactions and discussions.
Funke Akindele’s record-breaking film, ‘A Tribe Called Judah’ snub has emerged as the biggest talking point from the event.
The movie, ‘Breath Of Life’ was the biggest winner of the night, snagging six awards, including Best Movie, Best Sound Design, Best Director (BB Sasore), Best Lead Actor (Wale Ojo), Best Supporting Actor (Ademola Adedoyin), Best Supporting Actress (Genoveva Umeh), and Trailblazer (Chimezie Imo).
‘A Tribe Called Judah’ on the other hand, lost all five nominations despite becoming the first Nigerian movie to gross over N1 billion in cinema last December.
As expected, the snub of Nigeria’s highest-grossing film has sparked a social media firestorm.
Here is a compilation of some of the reactions on X:
@abazwhylllz wrote, “A Tribe Called Judah is my own movie of the year. Keep your head high Funke Akindele.”
@EObaniyi opined, “Award or not, Funke Akindele is the best in the game.”
@PoojaMedia wrote, “A Tribe Called Judah didn’t win any award. Wow”
@Wizkidfc wrote, “A Tribe Called Judah is my own Best Movie. Funke Akindele take your flowers.”
@Lil_maamiii stated, “I don’t want to hear anything like Funke Akindele was robbed oo, when she bagged all the awards with ‘Omo Ghetto: The Saga’, nobody remembered robbery oo, so please let ‘Breath Of Life’ breathe.”
@EngOguns wrote, “I’m not even that mad that A Tribe Called Judah was snubbed in all categories. I’m livid because not once did they mention the 1B milestone.. It’s obvious that #AMVCA10 no longer f*ck with Funke Akindele.”
@PureMind_ asserted, “The money Funke Akindele made from ‘A Tribe called Judah’ must have rattled a lot of people for this level of hate.”
@Ifeobayeji wrote, “Anyway, Kehinde had a better performance than Funke if we compare both movies [‘Adire’ and ‘A Tribe Called Judah’]. But how ‘Breath of Life’ won best movie over ATCJ [‘A Tribe Called Judah’] is shocking.”
@Kumms argued, “‘Breath of Life’ is a better movie than ‘A Tribe Called Judah’ on every metric.”
@MissyKobell opined, “‘A Tribe Called Judah’ is better than ‘Adire’ sha… You can’t beat Funke Akindele in a category if we are being honest.”
@tianaadebayo wrote, “‘A Tribe Called Judah’ by Funke Akindele gave us what we have always known in a different way but ‘Breath Of Life’ storyline was awesome.. it’s a well deserved win for ‘Breath Of Life’ and that doesn’t mean that Funke Akindele isn’t a winner.. she is now and always.”
@The_Bolutife wrote, “Second year that Funke Akindele’s blockbuster movie didn’t win any awards. Something is fishing.”
Nigerian actress and movie producer, Funke Akindele has stated that being an underdog in the industry fuels her.
She stated that despite the challenges she encounters, she keeps pushing boundaries.
The movie star made this known in a post via her X handle on Friday.
According to the Cinema Box-Office Queen, her success isn’t measured by accolades but by the stories she tells and the impact she makes on people’s lives.
She further urged her fans and followers never to give up their dreams, regardless of the odds.
She wrote, “Being an underdog doesn’t define me, it fuels me. Despite all the challenges I face, I keep pushing boundaries in Nigerian cinema. My success isn’t measured by accolades but by the stories I tell and the lives I impact. Here’s to never giving up on your dreams, no matter the odds. #UnderdogSpirit #Persistence #keeppushing”
At the end of its theatrical run, Funke Akindele’s film “A Tribe Called Judah” took in ₦1.4 billion.
Remember that when the film debuted on December 15, 2023, it broke box office records to become the highest-grossing Nollywood film ever as well as the first to earn a billion naira at the box office.
It is the fastest Nollywood film to accomplish this accomplishment, having accomplished all of these within three weeks of its debut.
The Cinema Exhibitors Association of Nigeria (CEAN) provided data showing that, after 11 weeks, the film’s final weekend, which took place between February 23 and February 25, only brought in ₦14,745 from its two screens.
Before disappearing from the weekly top 20, A Tribe Called Judah had a final gross of ₦1,404,207,541, with 374,552 ticket admissions.
In addition, the movie was shown in twelve different provinces of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Congo, Gabon, Guinea, Rwanda, Senegal, and Togo, as well as in Ghana and the United Kingdom.
Funke Akindele, a Nollywood actress and filmmaker, is appreciative of West Africa and Nigeria for helping to make her film “A Tribe Called Judah” a hit.
Funke Akindele broke all previous records for the Nigerian film industry and became the first Nollywood movie to earn one billion naira in a short amount of time.
Her film smashed box office records in the UK as well, earning an incredible £80,000 in just four weeks of streaming.
Funke Akindele has now sent a letter of thanks to Nigeria and West Africa for their contributions in the movie’s historic voyage, following the N1.4 billion box office triumph of her film.
“We are grateful for the incredible journey of #ATribeCalledJudah – the #1 film in Nigeria and West Africa!” the writer said. 🎬🌟 I appreciate you making it the biggest movie.
Thanks for making it the biggest film for Funke Akindele, the top Nollywood movie, and the ultimate cinematic triumph of 2023/2024🏆 This movie is distributed by @filmoneng #ATribeCalledJudah#NollywoodSuccess”
See reactions below:
olayodejuliana said: “The woman king!!!!!!!!!!!!! screaming congratulations………… This is the beginning of greater things mama❤️❤️❤️🎉🎉🎉🎊🎊🎊”
folagade_banks wrote: “Queen 👏👏 A round of Applause for the Queen❤”
Chidi Mokeme reacted: “No Contest 👏👏👏”
deyemitheactor penned: “My darling Sis Funke… congratulations! Abeg you fit borrow #AllsFairInLove just the . (point)? Tenx a billion! 😂😂♥️♥️”
Funke Akindele, the popular Nigerian actress, last night gave an epic response to an X user who came at her online,.
She responded to the X user who asked her to go and remarry as she is getting older.
The actress who has been married twice, spotted the comment and referred to the X user as a ‘wedding planner’
See their exchange below…
Funke Akindele, the famous Nollywood actress, has urged up-and-coming artistes to study and understand the contracts they have with their labels.
Akindele said this on the sidelines of the premiere of the Prime Video Five Part Mini Series tilted: ‘She must be Obeyed’, held at Filmhouse, IMAX Cinema, Lekki, Lagos.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the mini series is about the lives of three successful music stars, their rivalries and the backstabbing activities they engage in to outshine one another.
The series which premieres on Sept. 29 on Prime Video, features an ensemble cast led by Funke Akindele, Lateef Adedimeji, Nancy Isime and Akah Anani.
Patience Ozokwo, Mike Ezuronye, Rachael Okonkwo, amongst others, are in the cast.
Akindele emphasised on the need for young artistes to be educated noting that they must be patient and careful in their proceedings.
“It is extremely important for young and up-and-coming artistes to ensure that they study their contracts to know the details and know what they are going through.”
“We put out a content that affects young artistes and that is why we came up with this series so that when they watch it, they would learn a lot of things and be very careful.
“Young artistes need to be educated and we need to organise a lot of seminars, workshops for them to know that they are important.
“The young talents are very hungry to be seen as they want to showcase their talent but unfortunately, they don’t study their contracts, they don’t get a lawyer or families that are experienced to educate them.
“The series will teach them a lot of things that will help them grow and learn the basic things in the industry,” she said.
She noted that the series centres on the competition in the entertainment industry.
“The main character, ’SHE’, is very condescending and a bully, just like in every sector, you have bullies everywhere as along as there is hierarchy.”
“You get to see competition, drama, fashion, music and we had to showcase what young talents go through.
“The series is an eye opener for everyone and most importantly, it is very educating as well as entertaining, so, I encourage everyone to watch it.” she said.