How Afrobeats Star Burna Boy Is Taking Pan-African Cinema to the Next Level by Supporting Revenge Thriller ‘3 Cold Dishes’

Executive produced by Afrobeats superstar Burna Boy, the new pan-African thriller "3 Cold Dishes" is a calculated effort to introduce a new wave of African cinema to international viewers. The plot follows three women—Esosa, Fatouma, and Giselle—who, after being forced into the sex trade as teenagers, meticulously plan and execute a complex revenge scheme against their traffickers thirteen years later across West Africa. The project is helmed by Nigerian director Asurf Oluseyi, a self-taught filmmaker who learned his craft by studying techniques on YouTube. Oluseyi, known for the acclaimed movie "Hakkunde" and numerous Burna Boy music videos, expressed a bold vision to Variety: he aims for "African cinema" to become a globally recognized genre, much like the worldwide musical phenomenon of Afrobeat.

The film's international campaign was launched with a premiere at London's Cineworld on October 3, ahead of its broader UK release on November 7. Oluseyi explained the strategic decision to debut in London, noting that Burna Boy lives there and the city hosts a significant Nigerian community. He believed a Nigerian premiere might have typecast the film as a local production, whereas a London launch immediately established its pan-African scope. This global strategy continues as "3 Cold Dishes" is scheduled to open the Africa International Film Festival (AFRIFF) in Lagos on November 2. Following the festival, a theatrical run is planned in roughly 26 African nations, with subsequent releases in France, the United States, and Canada.

A key component of the marketing plan leverages Burna Boy's massive concert tours. Francis Nebot of the production company Ifind disclosed that the film's trailer was shown to 80,000 attendees at Burna Boy's performance at the Stade de France in Paris. "Afrobeat music has already achieved global domination; this film is a logical next step in that cultural movement," Nebot remarked. The promotional alignment extends to the artist's U.S. tour, with premieres slated for late November in Los Angeles, Atlanta, and Houston. A Canadian release is confirmed for December 16, timed to coincide with his concerts there.

Beyond its powerful promotional engine, "3 Cold Dishes" incorporates several distinctive elements to attract a mainstream audience. It is presented in both English and French with subtitles and includes a full French dub—an uncommon feature for an African film. Additionally, the movie was shot in the widescreen CinemaScope format, providing the epic visual grandeur typically seen in major Hollywood productions. The narrative confronts the difficult issue of sex trafficking within Africa, a perspective often overlooked by mainstream cinema. Director Oluseyi highlighted a sobering reality, pointing out that "90% of these victims are trafficked from one African nation to another." This stands in stark contrast to films that typically focus on trafficking routes from Africa to Europe, underscoring an urgent, underreported regional crisis.

With a substantial budget of approximately $1 million—a significant sum for an African film—the project was conceived from the outset as a commercial venture. "Our primary objective was to create a film that audiences would pay to see and that would yield a financial return," Oluseyi emphasized, underscoring the goal of producing a profitable, widely distributed mainstream movie. The film is a co-production involving several partners, including Francis Nebot's Ifind, Alma Prods., Asurf Films, and Martian Network, with additional co-production from Pape Boye's Black Mic Mac. Burna Boy executive produces through his company, Spaceship Films, which he co-founded with his mother and longtime manager, Bose Ogulu. World sales are managed by Pape Boye, while North American representation is handled by the influential Creative Artists Agency (CAA)—a major Hollywood talent agency whose client roster includes numerous A-list actors and directors, lending significant industry clout to the project's stateside ambitions.