Former Big Brother Naija housemate Pere Egbi has stirred fresh debate after saying South African filmmakers are far ahead of Nollywood in terms of storytelling, production quality, and work ethics.
Pere made the statement on X, formerly Twitter, where he urged Nigerian filmmakers to consider collaborations with their South African counterparts.
“No offense to my Nollywood colleagues but you see South Africa, they are ahead of us o when it comes to film production, story telling, film making, work ethics, name it. They are ahead. We need to collaborate!” Pere wrote.
His comment drew reactions from social media users. One user, mr_cowann, said, “Nigeria is 15/100 Southy is 85/100.”
Another, Ksolo_hitz, wrote, “Nollywood stories are alike, and one can easily tell how the story will end.”
A user, Zamani Michael, commented, “100 steps ahead abeg. SA films are Hollywood standard.”
Princesshelenmusifiwa added, “Since long time now, Abi I never knew ni?” while Priscillaojeh said, “He’s right. Their storyline is fire.”
One official_fancorner wrote, “South Africa nah Hollywood standard.”
The conversation comes weeks after Nollywood legend Omotola Jalade Ekeinde lamented that unlike Hollywood where actors get residuals, Nollywood lacks structure, leaving actors unrewarded despite years of work.
Also weighing in recently, filmmaker Mary Njoku questioned the benefits of Nollywood guilds and associations, saying she could not answer when a budding filmmaker asked her what they truly offer.
Media personality Daddy Freeze had earlier countered actor Nkem Owoh’s claim that Nollywood movies are highly competitive with foreign productions. Freeze argued that Nollywood is “still way behind” and needs honest reflection.
Veteran actor Kanayo O. Kanayo also faulted producers who depend heavily on YouTube, accusing them of lowering industry standards. Yoruba actress Debbie Shokoya had raised similar concerns, warning her colleagues against putting out low-quality content that weakens the reputation of Yoruba films.
