Iyabo Ojo bows out of Funke–Toyin feud mediation
Actress and filmmaker Iyabo Ojo has announced her decision to step away from efforts to reconcile her colleagues, Funke Akindele and Toyin Abraham, citing fatigue after previous interventions and renewed
Actress and filmmaker Iyabo Ojo has announced her decision to step away from efforts to reconcile her colleagues, Funke Akindele and Toyin Abraham, citing fatigue after previous interventions and renewed tensions within the industry.
In an Instagram post on Tuesday, Ojo addressed criticism directed at her, defended her past actions, and outlined her earlier attempts to broker peace between the two actresses.
She described the situation as unfortunate, stressing that there is room for everyone to thrive, but maintained that she could no longer appeal to either party to mend fences.
Ojo also disclosed that her relationship with Akindele spans several years, despite periods of disagreement, including a past episode where she publicly criticised Akindele in support of Abraham’s film—a decision she said she now regrets.
She wrote, "For those of you maligning my character, insulting me, and calling me unprintable names, this is for you!! Now, I need to set the record straight. This is the first and last time I will be talking about anything like this. Funke and I have been friends for the longest, but there were times we fell out, fault on both sides. I once came online to drag Funke because of Toyin's movie. That was a wrong move on my part; I should have handled it better. Funke and I later made up, and we addressed all our issues and put them behind us. I tried my very best to settle both of them, cried, knelt, begged both parties to embrace peace which they both later did, reason you saw them a few months ago interacting with one another, but there was a condition, no one was to shade online if any issue arose, they both promised to address it off camera, but unfortunately, Dec came, Toyin made some complaints about her movie in cinemas claiming some people or person was trying to sabotage her, some fans pointed accusing fingers towards Funke, that sparked up a fresh beef.
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Ojo also clarified the circumstances around Abraham’s last-minute withdrawal from her upcoming film, The Return of Arinzo.
"About The Return of Arinzo, Toyin was supposed to be in it but she said she was exhausted, and she also had to travel, so she pulled out last minute. I was upset bcos it cost me a lot to rewrite the story, but the show must go on, we had a deadline to film if I wanted The Return of Arinzo to make 3rd of April. She apologized, we made up, and the rest is history." Honestly, all this saddened me because the sky is big enough for all. I have tried my best, but at this point, I can't beg anyone anymore. I honestly don't want to get involved anymore. Please, you all should respect that... when both parties are ready, they will make peace. I love them both regardless. The Return of Arinzo will start showing in all cinemas nationwide from the 3rd of April," she added.
The statement comes days after the star-studded premiere of The Return of Arinzo on Sunday, March 29, 2026, at the Balmoral Event Centre in Lagos.
A viral video from the event captured an awkward moment in which Abraham greeted Ojo and other colleagues, including Mercy Aigbe, before approaching Akindele.
Akindele appeared to ignore the greeting, keeping her gaze elsewhere as Abraham moved on.
The clip triggered widespread reactions, with reports emerging that both actresses unfollowed each other on Instagram shortly afterward.
