Joy onuorah

A surprise premiere of populary Nollywood actor Femi Adebayo’s new movie, ‘King of Thieves, was hosted at the Silverbird Cinema, Ikeja City Mall, Lagos state by Pay-Tv company, StarTimes.

Some of the guests present at the event were StarTimes CEO Alex Jian, Content Director Viki Liu, and Assistant Marketing Director, Bose Adewara; PR Manager, Lazarus Ibeabuchi; Nollywood actors, Yaw; members of Actors Guild of Nigeria, Segun Arinze, Kate Effiong, and Abubakar Yakubu, the movie producer, Femi Adebayo, and many others.

Meanwhile, this is the second time the film will be screened in Lagos. A grand premiere was first held on April 4 at the IMax Cinema Lekki, Lagos State.

The StarTimes brand ambassador, Adebayo, was praised for producing an action-thriller movie about the Yoruba culture.

Totally wowed by the surprise premiere, Adebayo couldn’t hold back his excitement. He appreciated StarTimes for celebrating him and his works.

Narrating the inspiration and hurdles of making the movie, he said: 

‘‘The inspiration behind this movie is to show the creativity of the Yoruba culture to the entire world. Cultural folklore is gradually dying, yet it is full of beautiful stories.”

“The challenges were extremely challenging, especially in the area of location. We had to travel to a remote area. Where we shot, there was no electricity. And we had to cross a river with a spiritual warning that we must not cross the river with groundnuts.”

Also, speaking at the private screening, Alex Jian, CEO of StarTimes Nigeria, said that he is proud to associate with the actor and his accomplishments.

In his words:

“A particular project like this tells African stories from an African perspective. Femi Adebayo is notable for setting standards in the industry.”

“I also wish to use this medium to assure our customers that even though these are huge investments to provide desired entertainment, StarTimes won’t transfer the cost to customers. We feel our customers’ pain in these trying times and would rather lessen the burden rather than increase it. Our ongoing Easter campaign, which comes with price reductions and extra viewing days, is a typical example.”

King of Thieves (Ogundabede) is a collaborative effort between Niyi Akinmolayan‘s Anthill studios and Femi Adebayo‘s Euphoria 360.

It is co-directed by Adebayo Tijani and Tope Adebayo Salami.

The movie also features Toyin Abraham, Lateef Adedimeji, Oga Bello, Broda Shaggi, Femi Adebayo, Segun Arinze, Odunlade Adekola, Ibrahim Chatta, Mr Macaroni, amongst other A-list actors.