Actress Iyabo Ojo has explained why Funke Akindele appeared to snub Toyin Abraham at the premiere of her film The Return of Arinzo in Lagos on Sunday night.
In an Instagram post on Tuesday following backlash about her handling of the situation, Iyabo said the moment was part of a longer set of disagreements between the two actresses.
“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 down, 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.”
Videos from the premiere showed Toyin approaching Funke and other guests to greet them, but Funke did not appear to respond to Toyin’s greeting before she walked away.
On why Toyin was not in The Return of Arinzo, Iyabo said the actress was originally signed on but pulled out at the last minute.
“About The Return of Arinzo, Toyin was suppose 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 alot, 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.”
Iyabo added she was saddened by the online controversy and did not want to get further involved.
“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.”
The moment captured on Sunday sparked a fresh wave of reactions on social media. In response to being ignored, Toyin reportedly commented on a post, “I have unfollowed her, God forbid bad things. If I ever greet her again, that means I’m a bastard,” a comment that was later deleted.
Reports also show both actresses unfollowed each other on Instagram after the incident, which has added to speculation that their relationship may have taken a new downturn.
