Nile Media Entertainment Group, Action Xtreme and Idris Elba’s 22Summers Studios have announced a strategic partnership to develop and produce a slate of action films from West Africa, with a focus on commercially driven stories rooted in African culture.
According to a statement made available to The Nollywood Reporter (TNR), the collaboration will prioritise high-energy action films that showcase African stories and talent while creating a long-term production ecosystem to support local creatives and strengthen the continent’s genre filmmaking industry.
Moses Babatope, Group CEO of Nile Media Entertainment Group, described the partnership as a major step towards building globally competitive African cinema.
“Action is one of the world’s most commercially powerful genres, yet Africa remains underrepresented despite its wealth of authentic stories and creative talent,” Babatope said.
“This partnership represents a significant step in our vision of building globally competitive African cinema. What excites me most is the opportunity to create a sustainable ecosystem that combines production, talent development and distribution.”
Action Xtreme CEO Chee Keong Cheung said working on the award-winning Son of the Soil exposed him to the depth of African storytelling and inspired the collaboration.
“It helped me discover the incredible depth of talent, stories and creative energy within Africa that deserves a global stage,” he said.
Cheung added that combining local talent with international production expertise would create commercially viable action films capable of reaching audiences worldwide while remaining authentically African.
For Elba, the partnership reflects a shared commitment to strengthening Africa’s film industry through collaboration.
“Success breeds data and data breeds investment,” he said.
22Summers Creative Director Gina Carter also expressed enthusiasm about the collaboration, which aims to establish a sustainable pipeline of African genre films for theatrical and streaming audiences worldwide.
Under the agreement, the first project is expected to be announced in the fourth quarter of 2026, with a second film scheduled for the first quarter of 2027. Elba and Carter will serve as executive producers, while Elba is also set to direct as part of the partnership. Cheung will direct and produce the first film for Action Xtreme, while Babatope will produce through Nile Motion Picture and oversee African distribution via Nile Entertainment.
The announcement adds to Nile Media Entertainment Group’s growing portfolio of international collaborations, including its theatrical distribution partnership with United International Pictures (UIP), which distributes films from Universal Pictures and Paramount Pictures across several territories.
