Mercy Aigbe Hosts Obasanjo At Private Movie Screening

Mercy Aigbe

Nollywood actress and filmmaker Mercy Aigbe has hosted former President Olusegun Obasanjo and businessman Farooq Oreagba at a private screening of her upcoming movie “Iwe Ala (An Ojude Oba Story).” He recently shared a clip on Instagram showing herself, OBJ and Oreagba dancing as they made their entrance to the event.

Her words, “Private Screening of our movie IWE ALA ( An Ojude Oba Story ) for His Excellency former president of the federal of Nigeria, Olusegun Obasanjo, some his friends and his Excos! IWE ALA opens in all cinemas nationwide from June 12 , 2026…. Mark your calendars ✅ Another blockbuster from the producers of the award winning movie AFAMEFUNA @come_on_naija @mrsfaj1 #TheMercyAigbeEra👸✨ #LeadingLady.”

The movie, scheduled for release in cinemas nationwide on June 12, is inspired by the Ojude Oba cultural festival in Ijebu Ode, Ogun State.

The screening comes days after the 2026 Ojude Oba festival was held in Ijebu Ode.

WOW.

Nollywood is a sobriquet that originally referred to the Nigerian film industry. The origin of the term dates back to the early 2000s, traced to an article in The New York Times. Due to the history of evolving meanings and contexts, there is no clear or agreed-upon definition for the term, which has made it a subject to several controversies.

The origin of the term “Nollywood” remains unclear; Jonathan Haynes traced the earliest usage of the word to a 2002 article by Matt Steinglass in the New York Times, where it was used to describe Nigerian cinema.

Charles Igwe noted that Norimitsu Onishi also used the name in a September 2002 article he wrote for the New York Times. The term continues to be used in the media to refer to the Nigerian film industry, with its definition later assumed to be a portmanteau of the words “Nigeria” and “Hollywood”, the American major film hub.

Film-making in Nigeria is divided largely along regional, and marginally ethnic and religious lines. Thus, there are distinct film industries – each seeking to portray the concern of the particular section and ethnicity it represents. However, there is the English-language film industry which is a melting pot for filmmaking and filmmakers from most of the regional industries.