Jide Kosoko has revealed that he is currently in debt after his film, ‘Eleko: Oba Esugbayi’, was unable to recover its production cost of over N300 million at the box office.
In a recent interview on African A-List, the veteran Nigerian actor explained that the funds for the film came from investors who anticipated returns on their investment.
However, the movie failed to generate sufficient revenue, and the modest earnings were divided among those involved.
“My film, ‘Eleko: Oba Esugbayi’, which we recently released and brought to cinemas, cost over N300 million. Do I personally have N300 million? Of course not.
It was provided by people who invested in the project, not as a gift, but as an investment. Unfortunately, after taking it to the cinemas, we didn’t make our money back. Whatever little we made was shared.
Right now, if you hear about someone weighed down by debt, that’s me,” Kosoko said.
His disclosure comes just weeks after fellow actor Ramsey Nouah pointed out that releasing films in cinemas is not always financially viable.
Nouah remarked that only a small percentage of movies shown in cinemas manage to recoup their production costs and turn a profit, adding that many producers still fail to break even, even after significant spending on advertising and promotion.
