A Lagos State High Court has ordered Amazon and the producers of the controversial movie Gangs of Lagos to issue an unreserved apology to the Isale Eko Descendants Union (IDU) for misrepresenting their cultural heritage and traditions.
The court also upheld the terms of settlement reached between IDU, Amazon, and 11 other defendants.
The controversial movie Gangs of Lagos, which was released in April 2023, portrays the thuggery and violent lifestyle of some parts of Lagos, touching on Lagos politics and revealing the greater weight behind street power.
Expressing displeasure, the state government, through its Commissioner for Tourism, Arts and Culture, Uzamat Akinbile-Yussuf, tagged the movie as a mockery of Lagos heritage.
Also expressing displeasure, the Isale Eko Descendants Union (IDU), in a lawsuit, demanded N10 billion in damages from the film producer and Amazon.
Reacting to the suit, Amazon argued that Lagos State lacked the constitutional power to censor films produced within its territory and asked the court to dismiss the suit.
However, in its ruling on Wednesday, March 12, 2025, Justice Idowu Alakija of the Lagos High Court ordered an unreserved apology to be tendered to the applicants, stat oking that the Gangs of Lagos movie erroneously portrayed the cultural heritage and traditions of the Isale Eko people.
The court also ordered the 12th respondent, Amazon, to issue a letter recognizing the applicants’ position that the film titled Gangs of Lagos erroneously portrayed and disparaged the cultural heritage of the well-respected Eyo Masquerade and the long-standing traditions of the Isale Eko people, and shall therein apologise to the applicants in this regard.
Reacting to the judgment, IDU Chairman Adeniyi Kazeem, SAN, expressed his pleasure that the union was able to protect the inalienable cultural rights of the communities.
“Today is a great day for the Isale Eko community of Lagos State, all Lagos indigenous communities, and Lagosians generally. Today, the relatively small community of Isale Eko was able to establish that, along with other rights, there are inalienable cultural rights that accrue to indigenous communities that need to be vigorously protected.”
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