The release of Nigerian Netflix series “Blood Sisters” raised a lot of controversial conversations on the issue of nudity in movies. An RCCG pastor tweeted stating this opinion.
And many twitter users argued on the triviality and seriousness of nudity in Nigerian movies, that Nigerians are too archaic and judgmental. ‘On-Screen Exposure and Intimacy’ in Nigerian movies is becoming rampant for a country that is perceived to be very ‘religious’, it’s no news that nudity sells like hot buns and leaves the actors who agree to show some nude, topical and sort after by fans. While in most Hollywood movies it seems nudity in either full or small form has become a norm. Whereas, most India and Korean movies thrive and gain popularity without nudity. This makes me wonder, how they manage to pull it off, is it their storyline, acting or scenery?
Also most on- screen exposure seen in movies are done by females and many viewers accept this without protest.
According to a 2018 Analysis of 1,100 popular films, 25.4 percent of women had roles with some nudity, versus 9.6 percent of men.
This brings us to the question of, is nudity really essential in movies?
This is a controversial question, that brews more questions like; What is the objective of nudity in movies? Do actors have control on the amount they show? Why do producers allow nudity in their films? Etc.
From an article research a director Elizabeth Wood gave her opinion on nudity in films; stating that some form of “On-Screen Exposure” was required to give a realistic feel to the story. She said “I knew that this film had to feel really raw and really exposed.”_ Elizabeth Wood, Director of ‘White Girl’.
Timothy Dalton, former James Bond actor thinks sex scenes and nudity are “not necessary” in films. In his discussion with The Independent he said: “I know the girls don’t like it, when they’re asked to take their clothes off or do nude shots. They do it, but they don’t like it. They’re always upset.”
He also thinks audiences should just go and watch porn if they’re looking to see sex on screen as it can detract away from “serious” work.
Nollywood actor, Uche Maduagwu also faulted the Nigerian Netflix series Blood Sisters.
He feels the nude scenes in the series are not necessary, since they are other ways to tell the story without exposing sensitive parts of the body.
He also wrote an open letter to Kate Henshaw who played (Udak) one of the characters in the series, expressing his opinion on how disappointed he is in the celebration of the series and it’s unnecessary nude scenes. He added that; “he is not surprised that the movie has reached top 10, because nudity sells faster than good content.”
Well, like I earlier stated the issue of nudity and intimacy in movies is very controversial, while some feel it’s a taboo and goes against their cultural norms, others see it as an artistic form of expression which adds more to the feel of a story.
For me, more questions still arise, do viewers really watch these scenes without sexualizing the actors? Do they actually rate the movies based on its contents rather than the nudes? Are these actors really comfortable to unclad on-screen?
Though, they might be actors who don’t mind showing off a little flesh, there also will be actors who do mind. In the end it’s all about the individuals and what they want.