Omotola Blasts Nollywood Royalty System: ‘Hollywood Paid Me After Five Years’
By Dim Oba, LAGOS – Veteran Nollywood star Omotola Jalade Ekehinde has reignited the conversation around royalties and residual payments in Nigeria’s film industry, revealing that she received a payment from a Hollywood production five years after working on it, but earned nothing in royalties from three decades of work in Nollywood.
Omotola revisited her controversial 2025 remarks about the stark difference between her financial experiences in Nollywood and Hollywood.
The actress explained that the issue is not simply about how much actors are paid when they appear on set, but whether they continue to benefit financially when their work is released, distributed and watched years later.
According to Omotola, Nollywood gave her the platform to build a hugely successful career and become one of Africa’s most recognisable actresses. However, she said her experience in Hollywood exposed her to a system where an actor can continue to earn from a project long after production has ended.
“Hollywood paid me after five years; Nollywood paid nothing after 30 years,” she said.
Her comments have renewed scrutiny of the payment structure in Nollywood, particularly the limited culture of residuals and royalties for actors whose films continue to generate value long after their initial release.
The debate has become even more significant with the rise of streaming platforms, where older Nigerian films can continue attracting audiences and generating revenue years after they were produced.
Omotola’s experience has therefore raised broader questions about actors’ contracts, intellectual property rights, revenue-sharing arrangements and whether Nigerian performers should have a stronger financial stake in the long-term success of their work.
For one of Nollywood’s most celebrated stars, the issue is no longer just about individual earnings—it is about building an industry where creators can continue to benefit from the value of the work they helped create.
