A Guide to the Nollywood Blockbusters Coming Out in December

Every film industry has its blockbuster season; Hollywood’s is the summer while Nollywood’s is over the December holidays. Since the Mo Abudu-produced blockbusters Fifty and Wedding Party dropped in December 2015 and 2016 respectively, producers have figured that the month is one of the best periods to release their fun, high-budget films. The reasons are simple: December is Nigeria’s holiday month, it is also the month people seem to spend the most on entertainment.

During the summer, Hollywood gave us Avengers: Endgame, Spiderman: Far From Home, and Lion King. Below we look at the Nollywood blockbusters coming out in December 2019.

Muna (December 6)

An action film starring both Hollywood and Nollywood actors, but one wonders why it is coming out in a such a busy month packed with movies that are surely going to get most of the showtimes.

‘Muna’ is the story of a spirited girl raised by her grandmother, the last surviving member of their family. Muna’s driving desire to provide a better life for herself and grandmother in the land of milk and honey leads to shady characters that will change the trajectory — landing her smack dab into the hands of traffickers. That experience turns her once golden heart into one driven by stone-cold revenge on those who stole her innocence.

Cast: Adesua Etomi, Onyeka Onwenu, Adam Huss (Power), Robert Maino (Fast and Furious), and Falz.

Your Excellency (December 13)

What’s a December on these Nollywood streets without Ebonylife Films blessing us with a comedy featuring everybody? Following celebrity-vehicled Chief Daddy, Wedding Party 1 and 2,  Your Excellency is a big-budget comedy with a problematic, wealthy patriarch and an almost disaster event.

Nigeria is thrown into a social media frenzy when the most unlikely candidate ever decides to run for president. His unexpected rise intrigues the public, as they begin to believe it is possible for an outsider to aspire to the highest public office. As the story reaches its climax, you start to think that anything and everything can happen if you capture the imagination of a nation through the power of social media.

Cast: Funke Akindele, Akin Lewis, Falz, Shaffy Below, Deyemi Okanlawon, Alex Ekubo, Emma OhMaGod, Kunle Coker, and Eku Edewor.

Merry Men 2 (December 20)

The evil of the Merry Men has come to hunt them. Ay’s newest profitable franchise returns with a bigger cast, a new director, and plot centered on revenge. The prequel was a mess; hopefully, this sequel redeems the franchise.

Merry Men II continues the adventures of Ayo, Naz, Amaju,  and Remi on another fast-paced and high tension mission. This time though, they may be way in over their head, egged on only by their love for and desperate determination to save Kemi. Things have changed for the charming foursome, the Merry Men.

Cast: Ay, Ramsey Nouah, Jim Iyke, Williams Uchemba, Falz, Ireti Doyle, Regina Daniels, and Nancy Isime.

Sugar Rush (December 25)

Jade Osiberu’s entrance into Nollywood was the classic Isoken, and now in the producer seat, she has backed a young director, Kayode Kasum, on a project that screams sweetness. The film features the talented trio of Adesua Etomi, Bisola Aiyeola, and Bimbo Ademoye as its lead actors, and on paper, this looks perfect. Also, in the trailer, they seem to be having fun. Hopefully, we will have fun with them at the cinema.

The film follows three friends who happen on $800,000 and go on a partying spree which is cut short when the many owners of the money come looking for it.

Cast: Adesua Etomi-Wellington, Bisola Aiyeola, Bimbo Ademoye, Banky W, Mawuli Gavor, Williams Uchemba, Uzor Arukwe, Toke Makinwa, and Omoni Oboli.