When we gush about our favourite Nollywood blockbusters, we tend to shower all the love on the actors who bring the drama or the directors who yell, “Action!”
But what about the masterminds behind the scenes; the writers who sit hunched over their laptops, churning out the twists and turns that leave us clutching our popcorn in shock?
Yes, writers are the true wizards of the screen, conjuring up the love triangles, the slap-worthy betrayals, and the “Jesus-is-Lord!” plot twists that keep us glued to our seats. They’re the ones making sure your favourite Nollywood stars have lines so iconic, that you’re still quoting them in traffic weeks later.
In 2024, Nollywood gave us a buffet of cinematic hits—from thrillers that had us biting our nails to rom-coms that made us believe in love (again). But behind every box office smash is a writer, grinding away to give us those unforgettable stories.
READ ALSO: Catch up on these Nollywood films streaming on Netflix today!
So, grab a drink, because we’re about to meet the literary legends behind Nollywood’s biggest cinema releases of the year.
Tunde Babalola – Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti
A seasoned screenwriter in Nigerian cinema and British television whose notable Nollywood works include Last Flight to Abuja, Critical Assignment, October 1, Citation, and the TV soap opera, Tinsel. He was a writer on the UK series The Bill and In Exile. Initially titled Dust, Babalola wrote the script for the critically acclaimed blockbuster 1 October in 2014. The film was directed by Kunle Afolayan. In 2015, he joined as the writer and producer of the comedy TV production Rib Busters: Comedy Show. In 2015, Babalola won the awards for Best Comedy Writer for the film The Meeting and Best Drama Writer for the film October 1 at the Africa Magic Viewers’ Choice Awards. In 2024 he wrote the script for the biggest biopic in West Africa, Funmilayo Ransome Kuti and another epic Netflix project House of Ga’a. Directed by Bolanle Austen-Peters, Funmilayo Ransome Kuti won Best Screenplay and Best Film at the African Film Festival (AFRIFF) in 2023.
Jack’enneth Opukeme – Farmer’s Bride
Opukeme has several high-performing works to his credit. Some of them include Adire, Battle on Buka Street and most recently Farmer’s Bride which he took his career further by co-directing with Adebayo Tijani. With his background in Theater and Media at the University of Calabar, Opukeme found his interest in directing and in his final year, he realized he had a thing for directing so he directed Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun, a play in school. He came to Lagos as an intern for FilmOne, the leading film distributor in Nigeria and his career took off from there.
Anthony Kehinde Joseph – Queen Lateefah
This guy is behind the screenplay of popular works including Bling Lagosians, Afamefuna: An Nwa-boi Story, Merry Men, Ijakumo: The Born Again Stripper, Knocking on Heaven’s Door, and Champagne. With Queen Lateefah, Joseph through the life of an elite-wanna-be weaves a story that explores deception, lies and the cost of living a fake life in modern-day Lagos.
Dare Olaitan and Stephen Okonkwo – Ajosepo
Olaitan is popular for the film Ojukokoro, a 2016 film which received the Africa Movie Academy Awards (AMAA). He also wrote Dwindle, Ile Owo, Obara’M and Ègún. Okonkwo has screenplay credit for several notable works like Soole, Obara’m, Honey Money, and an upcoming project The Party. In 2018, Olaitan wrote and directed Knockout Blessing, a movie which explores the story of an ambitious female boxer who finds herself entangled in the world of political corruption. The film was nominated for Best Nigerian Film and Best Visual Effects at the 2019 Africa Movie Academy Awards. Ajosepo which he shares screenplay credit with Okonkwo is a 2024 comedy-drama film that explores the impact of family dynamics and cultural nuances on a young couple preparing for marriage. The film held the top seat at the Nigerian box office 4 weeks after its release.
Cheta Chukwu – The Uprising Wives on Strike 3
Cheta Chukwu is a writer-director with several works to his credit including Strawberry Chinny (starring Genoveva Umeh and Chimezie Imo) which made the official selection list for the Essence Festival this year. He wrote and directed Payday, a comedy-drama, which had its theatrical release in Nigeria and 9 Francophone countries but was later acquired by Netflix. His newest screenplay, The Uprising: Wives On Strike 3 and achieved impressive feats since its release on October 18, 2024. A few months ago, he got accepted into the Torino Film Lab’s (TFL) Extended Writer-Director Program in the Netherlands, for his new project, Love is a Deeper Shade of Red, further cementing his place in the global film industry.
