Something spectacular is happening in Nollywood, and it is not on the big screen. The red carpets remain rolled out, the popcorn machines still hum, but the country’s most bankable actor-producers are quietly shifting allegiance from cinemas to YouTube. It is not out of disloyalty to the cinema tradition; it is pure economics.
At the AFRIFF panel on ‘Quality vs. Quantity’, some of Nollywood’s most successful YouTube filmmakers said out loud what the industry had danced around for two years – a single viral hit on YouTube can repay production costs (in weeks, not months) without box-office uncertainty. In a cinema market where breaking even has become a gamble, it is no surprise that creators are voting with their budgets.
“The YouTube boom is not merely a trend. It is a turning point, a chance for the industry to take control of revenue, distribution and global reach. But long-term prosperity will not come from viral luck; it will come from collaboration, craft and strategy.”
The mathematics is not quite clear. A cinema-grade release can demand between N250 million and N300 million, while a strong YouTube title costs between N9 million and N15 million. The upper end of the YouTube market now routinely earns one to five million views, translating into steady advert revenue. Meanwhile, the total cinema admissions across Anglo-West Africa for all films in 2025 to date are just slightly above two million, according to FilmOne. The audiences have not disappeared; they have simply migrated to where convenience and affordability meet – home screens and smartphones.
For many filmmakers, this shift represents liberation. Sandra Okunzuwa, whose channel has crossed 169 million views in just over a year, is proof that a creator can bypass corporate gatekeepers, control distribution, and retain full ownership, a dream that was unthinkable during the DVD and early cinema eras. Ruth Kadiri has built an empire on the model, regularly pulling more than five million views per film, while former Big Brother star Saga Adeolu’s N50 million debut movie Falling Notes has already hit 1.3 million views three weeks post-release.
For diasporan viewers, YouTube has become a bridge to home; for local audiences, it is the solution to harsh economic realities. The average Lagos family will happily watch six Nollywood movies on YouTube rather than spend N30,000 – N40,000 at the cinema. No amount of nostalgia can compete with disposable income pressure.
But behind the gains lies a growing concern, one that, if ignored, could sink the industry again the same way the DVD boom eventually collapsed.
YouTube may seem like a paradise, but it is unforgiving. Rising cost bases mean that a N10 million film now needs between 10 and 12 million organic views within 30-60 days just to break even. Many new channels burn through their first four or five uploads without profit because the algorithm favours established creators. Some producers quietly inflate view numbers by purchasing traffic, a strategy that earns no revenue but creates false expectations.
Even more dangerous is the culture of hyper-independence. Nollywood veterans at AFRIFF sounded the alarm: the refusal of star-actors-running-channels to collaborate or share revenue is pushing the industry toward the same structural failure that killed the DVD era. The average YouTube filmmaker would rather pay an actor N5 million to N6 million upfront, or do without them, than split earnings.
Lilian Afegbai puts it frankly: “If I can make a film myself, put it on my channel and keep 100 percent of the money, why would I partner and share?”
When every actor wants to star and own, the budgets shrink, storylines simplify, and the long-term craftsmanship of cinema-calibre filmmaking becomes unaffordable. Ego Boyo warns that actors are accepting multiple roles simultaneously (shooting three or four films per week), which dilutes performance quality and weakens storytelling. Mildred Okwo adds that this is not malicious greed but the survival instinct of people who fought for relevance in an unforgiving industry.
Read also: Filmhouse Group deepens commitment to African storytelling with AFRIFF 2025 partnership
YouTube is not the enemy, however, and if anything, it has democratised Nollywood, created new revenue lanes, and shielded filmmakers from the harsh economics of theatrical exhibition. Moreover, for the industry to thrive, not just survive, a reset in attitude is crucial.
Filmmakers who split costs and split revenues will outlive those trying to carry the entire load alone. Mini-studios and creative collectives should become the norm, just as K-drama production houses did before their global boom.
The teenage/high-school trope works today, but audiences evolve. Creators who invest in research rather than trend-chasing will build sustainable audiences. Additionally, some films belong on YouTube; others in cinemas, on streaming platforms, and even in international festival runs. Intelligent windowing, not ideology, should drive release strategy.
Actors cannot shoot four roles in one week and expect excellence. Directors cannot churn out a film every 10 days and expect longevity. Talent management and time allocation should become contractual norms. And above all, filmmaking must not become a race to the bottom. Viewers can detect weak sound, poor scripting and rushed acting, and they abandon productions without sentiment.
The question is not whether cinema is dying or whether YouTube will win. The real test is whether Nollywood will evolve fast enough to avoid another collapse caused by short-term individualism and structural fragility. The YouTube boom is not merely a trend. It is a turning point, a chance for the industry to take control of revenue, distribution and global reach. But long-term prosperity will not come from viral luck; it will come from collaboration, craft and strategy.
If Nollywood learns from its past, the future could be a hybrid landscape where cinemas, YouTube and streaming all coexist, feeding each other rather than competing. If not, the industry risks repeating history – explosive growth today, painful implosion tomorrow. The choice, once again, is in the hands of the filmmakers.
