Despite Lionheart’s success, Genevieve Nnaji has revealed that she did not receive the support she needed in Hollywood to pursue more opportunities.
After the release of her 2018 film LionHeart, which Netflix acquired for an estimated $3.8 million, Genevieve Nnaji talked about her experience seeking partnerships in Hollywood.
The actress talked about how she first realized she was a commodity in Hollywood while speaking on a panel at the 2024 Afro-Caribbean Trade and Investment Forum/Afreximbank Annual Meetings. She has benefited from Creative Africa Nexus (CANEX), an Afreximbank program that offers support, including financial support for trade and investment in Africa’s creative sector.
“For the first time, I realised I was a commodity. I thought, you know, given what I had done with Lionheart, and all of that, I was going to have an opportunity to do more. Getting there and having the kind of support, that obviously CANEX is bringing on board, but I thought I could find it in Hollywood. That was not quite the case,” she said.
“They wanted what I had but for their benefit. It was all about their story. It was all about how, even if it was our story, I could make it more authentic to their own understanding of whatever Africa is because they did have a lot of literature in their archives.”
“But I am Nollywood. I could have gone to Hollywood a long time if I wanted to. But my dream was to create a Nigerian industry that could compete with it. That’s because I’ve always believed in that. I have always believed that we were capable of actually owning an industry like that, that told our story for our people. I wanted that. I respect what Hollywood is doing. I respect what Bollywood is doing and I felt like Nollywood had an equal chance at it,” she said.
Watch video:
