The record-breaking screening took place on Saturday, September 26, as thousands of movie lovers gathered at the Lagos landmark for a large-scale premiere designed to surpass the existing Guinness World Records benchmark for the largest attendance at a film screening in a single location. Guinness World Records officially recognised 51,000 viewers as the qualifying attendance for the new record.
The achievement surpassed the previous record of 43,624 people, established in 2015 when the Filipino film Felix Manalo was screened at the Philippine Arena in Ciudad de Victoria, Philippines. Guinness World Records lists 43,624 as the previous record for the largest attendance at a film screening.
The organisers had initially targeted an audience of 50,000 people for the simultaneous screening, with the event combining the film premiere with music, entertainment, food and other activities.
Large crowds began arriving at TBS several hours before the screening, with reports of long queues around the venue after the gates opened at about 2pm. The red carpet commenced around 3pm, while the main screening was scheduled for the evening.
The event attracted several government officials and prominent personalities from the Nigerian entertainment industry, including Lagos State Deputy Governor Obafemi Hamzat, Commissioner for Tourism, Arts and Culture Toke Benson-Awoyinka, Lateef Adedimeji, Kunle Remi, Stan Nze, Linda Ejiofor, Gabriel Afolayan and Kunle Afolayan.
While the overall crowd at the venue was reportedly higher, the Guinness qualifying figure was based on attendees who met the requirements for the record attempt, including remaining for the duration of the screening.
Black Market is directed by Fatimah Binta Gimsay and was written by Gimsay alongside Abdul Tijani-Ahmed. The film centres on five women involved in a cross-border smuggling operation whose lives are thrown into turmoil after the daughter of one of them is kidnapped.
The movie features an ensemble cast including Linda Ejiofor-Suleiman, Lateef Adedimeji, Omowunmi Dada, Scarlet Gomez, Teniola Aladese, Susan Pwajok, Ibrahim Yekini, popularly known as Itele D Icon, and Uzor Arukwe.
The production is a collaboration involving Rixel Studios, FilmOne Studios, Signet Ring Studios and Switch Visuals Production. The record attempt had been in preparation for several weeks, with the organisers seeking to create a large-scale cinematic experience capable of attracting tens of thousands of Nigerians to a single screening.
Ahead of the event, the organisers had publicly announced their intention to surpass the 43,624 attendance record and initially set a target of 50,000 viewers. The official event registration platform listed Tafawa Balewa Square as the venue and September 26, 2026, as the date of the screening.
With 51,000 qualifying viewers now officially recognised for the screening, Black Market has moved Nollywood into the Guinness World Records spotlight for the largest attendance at a film screening in a single location.
The achievement represents a significant moment for Nigeria's film industry, with the massive turnout demonstrating the ability of a Nollywood production to mobilise a large audience for a shared cinematic experience beyond the conventional cinema setting.
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