Former BBNaija star Pere Egbi has shared the challenges he faced as a filmmaker after investing over N200 million into his movie, The Silent Intruder. Despite his efforts, the film grossed only N53 million in cinemas, leaving him with a personal gain of just N8 million.
Pere took to Instagram to express his frustration, attributing the poor performance to limited screen times and inadequate promotion by cinemas. He revealed that he spent over N150 million of his own money and borrowed N11 million from a friend in London to complete the project.
“This nonsense some cinemas do—hiding films, poor screen times—it happened to The Silent Intruder,” he lamented. He also noted that nearly a year after its release, the film has yet to secure deals with major streaming platforms like Netflix or Prime Video, unlike other films released in the same period.
Pere disclosed that he returned to America to work and repay his loan, and he is considering releasing the film on YouTube by January 2025 if no progress is made. “At this point, I don’t care about being blacklisted,” he said, highlighting the toll the experience has taken on him.
Pere’s ordeal sheds light on the challenges faced by Nigerian filmmakers, including accusations of cinemas prioritizing foreign films over local productions and offering limited screen times for Nigerian movies. This issue raises broader questions about Nollywood’s distribution systems, which many argue lack adequate structures for fair revenue sharing and support for independent creators.
His story has reignited calls for reforms in the Nigerian film industry to ensure equitable treatment of local productions and encourage investments in the growing sector.
