The Order of the Knights of Saint Mulumba Nigeria (KSM), a body of lay faithful within the Catholic Church, has strongly protested what it describes as a deliberate attempt by certain film producers to desecrate Christmas, a universal Christian festival that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ.
In separate letters dated December 18, 2025, addressed to the Director-General of the National Film and Video Censors’ Board (NFVCB), Abuja, and the Director-General of the Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON), Lagos, the Supreme Knight of KSM, Sir Steve Adehi, SAN, drew the attention of both regulatory bodies to the grave implications of promoting a film that undermines the sanctity of Christmas during the festive season.
In its letter to the NFVCB, the Order stated that it was “constrained to formally bring to your notice a highly offensive advertising material for a film titled ‘A Very Dirty Christmas’, conspicuously displayed on a billboard in a major part of Lagos.”
According to the Knights, the strategic placement of the billboard ensures high visibility and widespread exposure to residents, commuters, and other road users in the area. “The attendant effect of this distasteful and insolent advertising material on both the informed and the unwary is best left to the imagination,” the letter noted.
The Knights further observed that the advertisement, rendered in festive green and yellow lettering, is not only insensitive but also makes a mockery of one of the most important events in the Christian calendar: the birth of Jesus Christ, celebrated on December 25. “It is therefore blasphemous to brazenly caricature a season personified by our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ,” the letter stated.
The film, which was released to Nigerian cinemas on December 16, 2025, features a prominent cast including Lateef Adedimeji, Nancy Isime, Eucharia Anunobi, IK Ogbonna, and Wumi Toriola. It is marketed with the tagline, “This Christmas, the only thing getting unwrapped are secrets,” and centres on a chaotic family reunion in which various “secrets” are unveiled.
The Order maintained that the release of the film at the height of the holy Advent and Christmas season amounts, in both substance and symbolism, to a “gratuitous desecration of Christmas.” According to the Knights, “the timing and framing of the film are not merely insensitive; they constitute a mocking trivialisation of one of the most sacred moments in the Christian calendar.”
In its correspondence with the NFVCB, the Order further warned that “to turn this solemn season into a caricature laden with vulgar insinuations and irreverent undertones is to venture into the realm of blasphemy.” The Knights expressed deep concern that a film capable of offending the religious sensibilities of a significant segment of the Nigerian population was approved for public exhibition. Since its release, the Order noted, the film has continued to provoke widespread indignation, inflame passions, and generate avoidable tension.
The KSM cautioned that, if left unchecked, the film has the potential to undermine religious harmony and public peace. “In the light of the foregoing, we respectfully but firmly urge the National Film and Video Censors’ Board to act with urgency by ordering the immediate withdrawal of ‘A Very Dirty Christmas’ from all cinemas and exhibition platforms,” the letter stated.
The Christian body also called for appropriate sanctions against the producers and promoters of the film, as well as disciplinary measures against officials responsible for vetting and approving its release. According to the Knights, such actions are necessary to deter future infractions of this nature and to forestall a recurrence.
