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Nollywood movie ‘The Weekend’, a psychological thriller produced by Trino Motion Pictures, is now streaming on HBO Max across several countries in Central and Eastern Europe.
This marks a significant milestone for Nigeria’s film industry, as the film’s availability on a global streaming platform represents one of the most notable international distribution deals secured by an independently produced Nollywood thriller, also indicating a growing global appetite for Nigerian stories.
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Produced by Uche Okocha and directed by Daniel Oriahi, The Weekend is a psychological horror-thriller that explores family, tradition and hidden secrets through the story of a young woman whose visit to meet her fiancé’s family spirals into a disturbing ordeal.
The Weekend
The Weekend stars Uzoamaka Power as Nikiya, an orphan who accompanies her fiancé, Luke (Bucci Franklin), to meet his parents for the first time.
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What begins as a seemingly ordinary introduction soon evolves into a tense psychological battle as unsettling family traditions and long-buried secrets come to light.
The film also features a veteran cast including Meg Otanwa, Keppy Ekpenyong-Bassey, Gloria Anozie-Young, Damilola Ogunsi and Ghanaian actor James Gardiner.
Streaming
Following the distribution agreement, the film is now available to HBO Max subscribers across Central and Eastern Europe, including Poland, the Czech Republic, Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Slovenia, Serbia, and Hungary, among others.
The expansion into these territories introduces new audiences to Nollywood’s evolving cinematic language, which increasingly blends African storytelling traditions with global filmmaking techniques.
Nigeria’s film industry, widely known as Nollywood, is among the largest in the world by production volume and has seen increasing global visibility in recent years through international festivals and streaming platforms.
Acclaim
The film gained international attention following its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2024, where it became one of the few independently produced Nigerian films to screen at the prestigious New York event.
After its debut, The Weekend continued its festival run with selections at the BFI London Film Festival and Screamfest Horror Film Festival in the United States, one of the world’s longest-running horror film festivals.
Its festival success translated into awards on the international circuit, including the Best Film “Monster Award” at the Monsters Fantastic Film Festival.
Domestically, the film also made an impact at the Africa Movie Academy Awards, where it earned 16 nominations and won several prizes, including Best Film, Best Nigerian Film, Best Screenplay and Best Cinematography.
Growing global recognition
The deal with HBO Max underscores the growing international visibility of Nigerian films, particularly in the thriller and horror genres, which are attracting attention beyond Africa.
Speaking on the development, Mr Okocha, the managing director of Trino Motion Pictures, described the streaming deal as a defining moment for the company and Nigeria’s independent filmmaking community.
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“When we set out to make The Weekend, our ambition was to tell a story with themes that resonate globally but from an African perspective,” he said. “To have a platform like HBO Max recognise the quality of the film and present it to audiences across multiple territories is a strong validation that Nigerian stories belong on the world stage.”
Trino Motion Pictures said the development reflects its broader mission of producing high-quality films that showcase African stories to global audiences.
The company described the HBO Max deal as a step forward in positioning Nigerian independent cinema within the international film distribution ecosystem.
