- Ini Edo appeals to NFVCB not to pull her movie from cinemas
- CAN describes the movie title as offensive to Christian faith
- Actress says title is symbolic, not an attack on Christianity
- NFVCB confirms the film passed censorship and classification
Popular Nigerian actress and filmmaker Ini Edo has broken her silence over the controversy surrounding her latest movie, A Very Dirty Christmas, urging regulators not to remove the film based solely on its title.
The actress, who produced the movie, made the appeal in a video shared on her verified Instagram page after CAN described the title as offensive to the Christian faith.
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“I’m just begging to say, please, I took money from investors to do this film,” Ini Edo said. “If you pull it just because of the title, please watch the film first.”
She added that if the movie is found to dishonour God or Christianity in any way, she would personally withdraw it from cinemas.
“If it degrades Christians or God, I will pull it. But if it doesn’t, please let people see the story,” she said.
Ini Edo explained that the title was used as a metaphor meant to spark conversation and reflect the storyline, not to mock or disrespect Christmas, Christians, or religion.
The movie, however, attracted criticism from CAN, which argued that associating Christmas, a sacred celebration marking the birth of Jesus Christ with the word “dirty” undermines its spiritual meaning.
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In a statement, CAN said Christmas represents purity, peace, love, and redemption, adding that the title reduces a holy celebration to something sensational and crude.
Responding to the criticism, Ini Edo stated that there were no objections raised during the title selection process and insisted she would never be involved in anything that disrespects God.
“If I had any reservation from anywhere, we would not have used the title,” she said. “The only reason I’m here today is because of God.”
The actress, who openly identifies as a Christian, apologised to anyone offended by the title and promised to consider changing it.
“I’m so sorry. We will try to change the title,” she said.
Meanwhile, the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) clarified that the film was approved after undergoing the required censorship and classification process. The board said the Film Censorship Committee reviewed the movie within its narrative and thematic context before approval.
NFVCB also noted that it retains the authority to order the withdrawal of any film for further review if such action is considered necessary in the public interest.
