Actor and reality TV star Pere Egbi has shared his frustration with the Nigerian cinema system, accusing it of bias and poor treatment of certain films.
In a recent Instagram post, Pere echoed sentiments expressed by fellow actor Femi Branch, who criticized cinemas for unfair practices such as openly promoting specific movies over others.
Pere revealed the devastating impact these practices had on his movie ‘The Silent Intruder’, which suffered significant financial losses due to poor screening schedules and limited visibility. Despite investing over ₦200 million in production, including an ₦11 million loan from a friend in London, the film managed to gross only ₦53 million in cinemas. Out of that, Pere himself earned a mere ₦8 million.
The BBNaija star detailed his struggles, stating;
“Dear Femi Branch, I came across your video, and I want to say thank you for speaking out on this issue. Every single thing you said is pure facts. This nonsense some cinemas do; hiding films, poor screen times, it happened to ‘The Silent Intruder’. I spent over ₦150 million of my personal funds just on production, borrowed another ₦11 million, and still ended up being shown ‘shege’ by cinemas.”
According to Pere, the poor box office performance of his film has left him in financial distress. To recover, he has returned to the United States to work and repay his debts, expressing disappointment that other films released around the same time as ‘The Silent Intruder‘ have already secured deals with streaming platforms like Netflix and Prime Video. His film, however, remains in limbo.
Pere stated that if no streaming deal materializes by January 2025, he plans to release the film on YouTube.
“At this point, I don’t care about being blacklisted. If nothing comes through by the end of January, I’ll release the film on YouTube myself. Enough is enough,” he declared.
His revelations highlight broader concerns about transparency and fairness in Nigeria’s film distribution system. Pere’s case adds weight to Femi Branch’s call for cinemas to maintain neutrality and stop prioritizing certain films over others.
For Pere, this is not just a personal loss but a wake-up call for the industry to address these issues to create an equitable platform for filmmakers. As his deadline approaches, the industry is left to reflect on how such practices impact its growth and sustainability.
