'Merry Men 3' makes ₦17.1 million in opening weekend in cinemas

Over the weekend, the third film in the Merry Men franchise by AY Makun made its debut and topped the Nigerian box office chart.

The comedy crime thriller recorded a total gross of ₦17.1 million between October 13 and 15, 2023, according to the data compiled by the Cinema Exhibitors Association of Nigeria (CEAN).

However, this gross didn't come close to what the last film in the franchise recorded on its debut weekend. According to CEAN data, Merry Men 2 grossed ₦36.9 million in its first weekend between December 20 and 22, 2019.

In this sequel, three of the merry men face Dafe, played by Chidi Mokeme, a familiar face who goes to extreme lengths to seek revenge for being left behind in Russia during one of their old missions. He also hunts down corrupt politicians as he believes the group has failed in its duties to exact the right judgement.

Directed by Moses Inwang, the cast includes AY Makun, Ramsey Nouah, William Uchemba Sam Dede, Segun Arinze, Bucci Franklin, Nadia Buari, Jide Kosoko, Ufuoma McDermott, Iyabo Ojo, Francis Onwochei, Regina Daniels and Caroline Hutchings.

Something Like Gold ranked third in the last weekend's chart with ₦8.3 million weekend gross and ₦41.7 million total gross in three weeks; while A Weekend To Forget ranked fifth with ₦3.9 million weekend gross and ₦41.7 million total gross in four weeks.

Expendables 4 was kicked to the second spot on the chart with a gross of ₦9.1 million over the weekend, bringing its total gross to ₦92.1 million since its debut four weeks ago.