Showmax has unveiled an incredible slate of Original local productions ahead of its official relaunch in Kenya in May 2024
Following its relaunch in partnership with international media heavyweight Comcast’s NBCUniversal and Sky, Showmax will release new slates including Real Housewives of Nairobi S2, new rom-com series Big Girl Small World and many more.
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The streamer, which has already released an unbeatable lineup of African Originals in February, March and April alone, will be launching a record four Showmax Originals in Kenya in May.
This lineup includes Season 2 of the hit reality series The Real Housewives of Nairobi, which makes a comeback after a strong debut in 2023 that saw it break streaming records, with its first episode becoming the most-watched launch episode ever for any title on Showmax in Kenya. The Real Housewives of Nairobi S1 also won Best TV Show at the recent Kalasha Awards 2024, alongside Pepeta, another Showmax Original, which won Best TV Drama and Best Viewers’ Choice.
Viewers can also look forward to the new romcom series Big Girl Small World, featuring an all-female writing team and directed by Nick Mutuma (You Again, Sincerely Daisy); and dramedy Untying Kantai, written by Abel Mutua and directed by Philip Karanja, the Philit Productions duo behind the Kalasha-winning comedy Sue na Jonnie and AMVCA-winning films A Grand Little Lie and Click Click Bang.
There’s also Nilichoma, the first Showmax Original docuseries in Kenya. It features well-known personalities in Kenya who received an unexpected windfall and then blew it all.
Also, watch out for new weekly episodes of Kenyan hit drama Single Kiasi S3 every Tuesday until 27 May. One of Showmax’s top 10 most-watched shows of 2023, Single Kiasi received four nominations for Best TV Drama, Best Lead Actress for Faith Kibathi, Best Supporting Actor for Michael Munyoki and Best Viewers’ Choice (TV Drama) at Kalasha Awards 2024.
International blockbusters in May include the #1 box office movie of 2023, Barbie, from Oscar-nominated writer-director Greta Gerwig. Winner of over 180 awards, including six Critics Choice Awards and two Golden Globes, Barbie was up for seven Oscars this year, including Best Picture, Best Screenplay and Best Soundtrack (which it won). Joining Barbie for #ShowmaxBarbenheimer is Christopher Nolan’s 2023 box office hit Oppenheimer, winner of more than 300 awards including seven Oscars. The 2024 Academy Awards saw Oppenheimer win both Best Picture and Best Director for Nolan.
This means that by May 2024, Showmax will have the three biggest box office hits of 2023 globally (Oppenheimer, The Super Mario Bros. Movie, and Barbie), and 6 of the top 10 (#5: Fast X, #6: Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, and #9: Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning), as well as last year’s Sundance Grand Prix winner A Thousand and One.
For international series, Showmax subscribers will be able to binge HBO’s True Detective: Night Country, the most-watched season of True Detective, as well as the best-reviewed, with a 92% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. It’s also been confirmed that the second season of HBO’s House of the Dragon will be flying express to Showmax on Mondays from 17 June 2024.
“Showmax has been at the forefront of storytelling in Kenya. Our recent 26 nominations at the Kalasha Awards, a record high for our Originals, is a testament to that. This year, we’re offering our viewers even more diverse content, not just from Kenya but from other parts of the continent as well. More than 1 300 hours of new Showmax Originals will be released in 2024 across Africa so viewers will be able to watch an average of more than 3.5 hours of fresh local content on Showmax every day of the year,” says Showmax GM in East Africa, Emma Gichonge.
Showmax Premier League, the continent’s first standalone Premier League plan, will continue to showcase unmissable matches from the world’s most popular league as the 2023/2024 season comes to a nail-biting end.