Ex-CEAN chairman Patrick Lee addresses claims of cinema bias

Patrick Lee, a former chairman of the Cinema Exhibitors Association of Nigeria (CEAN), has addressed claims about cinemas promoting certain movies over others.

The allegations surfaced in December 2024, with actress Mercy Aigbe claiming that some cinemas discouraged fans from viewing her movie, ‘Thin Line’.

Actor Femi Branch also alleged that some cinema staff wear merchandise to advertise specific films, rather than remaining neutral.

BBNaija’s Pere also recounted how he lost over N150 million due to the “unfair practices” and alleged favoritism.

In an interview with Nollywood on Radio, Lee, who is Viva Cinemas’ head of operations, refuted the claims, arguing that it is not in the cinema’s interest to be biased.

He explained that cinemas prioritize high-selling films by giving them good screening times and the best facilities for commercial reasons.

Lee clarified that promotional T-shirts worn by staff are often misinterpreted as favoritism but are simply materials provided by producers.

“In busy periods, cinema equipment may break down. When it happens and you are unable to repair, you make a commercial decision,” he said.

“So, the decision is to move the movie with the highest audience to the hall with functioning equipment. Equipment breaking down often happens but the highest-selling film will always get the best facility because we need to take care of our customers. We get a lot of these allegations but it is not the generality of what happens in the cinema business.

“We do not tell customers what movie to watch. In the past, we had customers asking staff about movies to watch because there was not a lot of social media information, but we do not encourage customers to watch a movie over another.

“We do have a situation where a customer would see a cinema staff wearing a t-shirt of a movie, and it gets misinterpreted that the staff are trying to sway people to watch that movie, but it is just a promotional material given to us by the producers and distributors.

“Generally, persuading does not happen because it is not in the cinema’s interest to a large extent.

“…When a movie releases, the most important period determining the movie’s success is the first week. The first week tells you if a movie is going to sell.

“Going back to when the first franchise of Jenifa got to the cinema, we have it 12:40 pm and at that time the hall will be 90% filled already. You would want to say the time is unfavorable but the customers come to watch it.”

“…For example, Toyin Abraham’s core market is in the Southwest, particularly in cities like Osogbo, Akure, Ibadan, and Abeokuta. Cinemas in these areas will naturally give her films priority.

“Similarly, AY’s films perform better in the South-South and Southeast regions. Each cinema schedules movies based on its audience demographics.”

Lee urged producers to make formal complaints to the appropriate authorities instead of airing their grievances on social media.

He said official complaints allow for investigations and resolution, whereas social media statements are challenging to address.

“In the cinema association, we encourage producers to make an official complaint. Then we can investigate it officially, but when people go on social media to make a statement, we can look into it, but because it is not an official complaint, it is rather challenging to take up,” he added.