Sometimes, I wonder why Old Nollywood inspires so much nostalgia, but perhaps one of the biggest reasons is that they were never afraid to experiment. You could stumble upon a syrupy university romance, a goofy comedy about mischievous children, or, more often than not, a witchcraft thriller that promised to haunt your dreams. It was this unpredictability that made them unforgettable.
The witchcraft films, in particular, thrived on the fear of the viewers: fathers turning on their families for wealth, cultists offering blood sacrifices, and sinister little subplots that warned children never to pick up stray money on the ground unless they wanted to morph into yam.
For a whole generation, these movies entertained but also left remnants of trauma. In this story, I revisited the most famous titles from that era and rounded up the top 10 Nollywood witchcraft movies that truly traumatised a generation.
1. Koto Aye (1990)
Running time: 1h 33m
Director: Alhaji Yekini Ajileye
Genre: Horror
This Yoruba-language classic plays like a fever dream of witches, blood rituals, and eerie chants, with those jarring Nollywood sound effects that could rattle your bones. The film features the antics of a powerful witch, Abeni Agbon, who uses her diabolical powers for evil, notably to punish a woman who refused to provide her with food during a naming ceremony, resulting in the deaths of the woman’s twin children.
The movie was so unsettlingly scary that when some cast members later died in real life, rumours spread that they had been hunted down by the very spirits they portrayed. The famous witch dance scene, performed in flowing black, set against pounding and unrelenting drums, was the stuff of nightmares, leaving an entire generation wary of old women dressed in black.
2. Nneka the Pretty Serpent (1994)
Running time: 1h 33m
Director: Zeb Ejiro
Genre: Horror
Nneka the Pretty Serpent follows the life of Nneka, a young woman possessed by a river goddess who grants her powers to seduce wealthy, sleazy men and claim their souls. The backstory is as chilling as the plot: Nneka’s mother, desperate for a child, turned to the river goddess for help, and ended up dedicating her daughter to a lifetime of dark servitude.
For people who watched, the moral lesson was crystal clear: that impossibly beautiful woman who appears out of nowhere is probably a witch. And if she speaks to you? Run.
Watch Nneka the Pretty Serpent on YouTube
3. Living in Bondage (1992)
Running time: 2h 43m
Director: Chris Obi Rapu
Genre: Thiller, Drama
Kenneth Okonkwo makes his breakout into the spotlight with this spooky cult movie. The film follows Andy and Merit, a young couple whose marriage is strained by financial difficulties. Pressured to keep up with his wealthy peers, Andy joins a cult that demands loyalty to Lucifer and the ultimate sacrifice is killing a loved one. In a moment of desperation, Andy murders his wife, Merit, only to be tormented by her vengeful spirit.
The movie is a perfect exploration of the consequences of guilt and messing with the spiritual. The film is a salient reminder that the shortcut to wealth always comes with a price, and the dead never truly stay buried.
Watch Living in Bondage on YouTube.
4. Blood Money: The Vulture Men (1997)
Running time: 1h 31m
Director: Chico Ejiro
Genre: Thiller, Drama
This cult-horror takes the classic Nollywood obsession with quick wealth and turns it into a riveting story. Mike (Zack Orji) reconnects with his old schoolmate Collins (Kanayo O Kanayo), now a millionaire thanks to the black-market organ trade. Collins lures him into joining a secret cult known as The Vultures, led by a supernatural entity called the Great Vulture, who promises instant wealth in exchange for loyalty and blood.
When the cult eventually demands a blood sacrifice, Mike offers up his wife and mother, triggering an even darker arc. Haunted by his mother’s restless spirit, he becomes a serial killer, hunting down seven human heads to buy peace.
Watch Blood Money: The Vulture Men on YouTube.
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5. Rattlesnake (1995)
Running time: 2h 59m
Director: Amaka Igwe
Genre: Thiller, Drama
Rattlesnake tells the story of Ahanna, a young man forced to grow up too fast after his father’s mysterious death and his mother’s unwilling abandonment. Left to care for his two younger siblings, Ahanna turns his anger toward a devious uncle and plots his revenge. What begins as petty crime soon escalates into the creation of a tightly run gang, pulling off calculated operations in his desperate bid for survival.
The film captured the terrifying allure of power and the price of vengeance, reminding viewers that the line between survival and destruction is razor-thin.
6. Agbara Nla (1992)
Running time: 2h 52m
Director: Mike Bamiloye
Genre: Thiller, Drama
Agbara Nla paved the way for the current wave of Christian drama movies. It is also popular for introducing Nigeria to one of its scariest words: “Ayamatanga.” It’s set in a demon-ruled village held captive by Isawuru, a dreaded herbalist channelling unholy powers backed by the Aro Meta witches to oppress the villagers. Things begin to change when a young missionary couple, called by God to proclaim Christ’s power to save and deliver, steps into the scene.
What terrified audiences most were the spiritual warfare scenes, especially the moment a demon-possessed character roared “Ayamatanga,” later revealed as “I Am At Anger,” a phrase that became a Nigerian shorthand for evil.
7. Karishika (1998)
Running time: 1h 26m
Director: Christian Onu
Genre: Horror
Few Nollywood films etched themselves into the collective memory of Nigerians like Karishika. In this movie, Lucifer, in a bid to gather more followers, sends Karishika to Earth with one mission: tempt, corrupt, and drag as many souls as possible into hell.
Armed with beauty and seduction skills, Karishika preys on all those around her, offering money, sex, and fulfilled desires in exchange for eternal damnation. Her reign of terror, however, is challenged by Pastor Evarist, a devout man whose faith becomes the ultimate weapon against her.
The film’s eerie soundtrack and wild special effects made it unforgettable. A key takeaway from the movie was that temptation always comes dressed in glamour, but only God delivers the final say.
8. Sakobi: The Snake Girl (1998)
Running time: 1h 40m
Director: Christian Onu
Genre: Fantasy Horror
Directed by Zeb Ejiro, the film follows Frank Davies, a desperate man introduced by his friend Patrick to Sakobi, a mysterious woman tied to the cult of Kongodis and devoted to the Mighty Serpent goddess. For wealth and power, Frank is instructed to sacrifice his only daughter, Hope, and abandon his family to marry Sakobi.
If Nneka the Pretty Serpent birthed the archetype of the femme fatale witch, Sakobi: The Snake Girl perfected it.
Watch Sakobi: The Snake Girl on YouTube
9. End of the Wicked (1999)
Running time: 1h 34m
Director: Teco Benson
Genre: Horror
It takes a supremely assured director and an equally confident screenwriter to turn a basic idea into a contemporary horror narrative as gripping and scary as this low-budget movie from Helen Ukpabio. This film practically invented Nigeria’s child-witch hysteria.
The movie follows a coven of witches led by Beelzebub who torment families and recruit new members through rituals, including children lured with enchanted puff-puff. The horror goes on until a pastor, played by Helen Ukpabio herself, arrives to confront the demonic forces.
Watch End Of The Wicked on YouTube
10. The Last Burial (2000)
Running time: 1h 43m
Director: Lancelot Oduwa Imasuen
Genre: Horror
The Last Burial blurs the lines between fiction and reality, drawing from the story of Ogbuefi Nnamani, whose mysterious death unsettled his community. It tells of a man in financial ruin who, under the influence of his friends, joins an occult group that demands human sacrifices in exchange for wealth.
For years, he enjoys prosperity, but the bill eventually comes due. At his death, his burial ceremony erupts in chaos, plagued by strange happenings that suggest his pact with the occult followed him to the grave.
For many viewers, it was a cautionary tale culled directly from the headlines. The cult’s promise of riches may last a lifetime, but even the grave offers no escape from the debt.
Watch The Last Burial on YouTube
