Nigerian filmmaker Niyi Akinmolayan has downplayed concerns over the United States’ proposed tariff on foreign-produced movies, describing it as “not a big worry” for Nollywood and the African film industry.
Speaking on Channels Television’s entertainment programme, Akinmolayan explained that Nollywood’s primary market remains Nigeria, with international distribution largely driven by streaming platforms.
“Typically, the most common way we get our films shown in the U.S. recently has been via streaming — Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, to be precise.
“What usually happens is they have what they call a worldwide licence, and then they have a U.S. and Canada licence. This is because the U.S. and Canada licence is a bit different in terms of taxation — about 30 to 35 percent tax on the licence deal — whereas, all over the world, it’s a completely different thing,” he said.
He noted that, “We make films predominantly for the Nigerian market first, before trying to appeal to an international audience. Usually, in those discussions, there is some tax calculation very specific to the United States, but I honestly do not think that is what this particular Trump tariff issue is.
“I think he’s being very specific about the key American studios that are now doing a lot of their productions outside America.”
On Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump announced plans to impose a 100% tariff on all films produced outside the United States, citing national security concerns and the decline of the domestic film industry due to foreign tax incentives attracting U.S. productions abroad.
The proposal has sparked heated debate across the entertainment world. Critics argue that the global nature of filmmaking — involving international locations, crews, and post-production — makes it difficult to define what qualifies as a “foreign” film. There are also fears over the potential impact on independent films and co-productions that rely heavily on overseas budgets.
Reflecting on the possible implications, Akinmolayan expressed skepticism about the practical impact of the measure.
“Where exactly does the tariff come in? Is it from the production budget or the sales? The gross? What happens if you make the film and it doesn’t sell? What happens when you make a film targeted for festivals — and not as a commercial decision? It feels like a lot of it is still floating in the air,” he said.
“My thoughts would be that nothing much will change in terms of how much they need to spend if they are here or in any other part of the world apart from America — at least not in the immediate — because we do not know where the tariffs are going to be taken from,” Akinmolayan explained. “Typically, tariffs are taken ultimately from consumers in a place like America, which then motivates producers to save costs and do more of their work in America.”
He also highlighted the growing global nature of storytelling and collaboration: “I do not even see a future in such a thing because the world is becoming a global space.
“America is looking for stories to tell from all over the world — that’s why companies like Netflix and Amazon Prime have worked with us in Nigeria. So I do not even see this working in the long run. But we’re open to seeing how that goes.”
Looking ahead, Akinmolayan emphasised the importance of building trust and infrastructure in Nigeria to attract foreign productions.
“One of the things I was thinking about — even in Nigeria with initiatives like nollywoodfilmmaker.com — is to build a system of trust and reliability where Hollywood can actually come to film major productions in places like Nigeria. There are capable hands, good security, and all the like.
“So it would be very disappointing if you now do not have those incentives, especially if we work really hard to prove that Nigeria is a place where foreign productions can happen,” the filmmaker said.
Credit: Channels TV
