Revisiting the Showmax Nigeria Originals Era

Showmax launched in South Africa on 19 August 2015 as one of the continent’s early serious attempts to build a streaming platform tailored for African audiences with the ambition to compete globally.  After its rollout across multiple African markets in 2016, Nigeria—arguably one of the continent’s most influential media economies by scale, output and cultural diversity—was added in 2019 as part of a broader expansion strategy anchored on localisation and original commissions. In a market defined by Nollywood’s production dominance and Nigeria’s vast ethnic and linguistic diversity, Showmax’s entry signalled a deliberate push to centre hyper-local storytelling as a competitive streaming strategy across sub-Saharan Africa. 

In October 2021, the Basketmouth executive-produced Ghana Jollof premiered on Showmax as the first Nigerian original, marking a formal entry into indigenous production. The comedy-drama plays on the cliche rivalry between Nigerian and Ghanaian Jollof rice, serving as a cultural crossover that tells the story of two young Nigerians who move to Ghana in search of a better life. The comedy series, which was filmed in Lagos and Accra stars Basketmouth, comedian and actor Buchi, comedian Funnybone, Uzor Arukwe, and Akah Nnani. The Ghanaian cast includes Joselyn Dumas, Mawuli Gavor, and James Gardiner, Jacinta Ocansey, Portia Freelove, Brihanna Kinte, Jackson Albert Davies, Korkor Oyeba Mensah, and Kalybos.

The Real Housewives of Lagos

2022 was the year of firsts for Showmax as the company released some of its most ambitious projects and series. In April 2022, the AMVCA-winning The Real Housewives of Lagos S1, Showmax’s debut reality show, was launched. The reality show is a series following affluent Lagos socialites as they navigate luxury, business, and interpersonal drama in Nigeria’s high society.  

In June, Shomax released its debut docu-series, Journey of the Beats, a 10-part documentary series produced by creative entrepreneur and the creator of Storm Records, Obi Asika. The series whose episodes are accompanied by a Spotify playlist details a unique story that explores the origin and evolution of Afrobeats and black music. Episode One: Origins and the Switch Up is curated by Ed Keazor, co-director and producer of the documentary who is also a historian, lawyer and musician. Each episode is also told through the lens of music historians and some of Nigeria’s most prominent artists, including 2Baba, P-Square, Onyeka Onwenu, Daddy Showkey, Flavour, and D’Banj. The series goes behind the scenes to shed light on the Afrobeats movement that has gradually taken over the world. 

Diiche

In September, Diiche, Showmax’s debut limited series that received six AMVCA nominations including Best TV Series, Best Writer, Best Art Director, Best Lighting Designer, Best Picture Editor, Best Cinematographer and Best Director was released. The six-part psychological thriller directed by James Omokwe, Tolu Ajayi, Fiyin Gambo and Ifeoma Chukwuego stars Uzoamaka Power, Daniel K Daniel, Frank Konwea, Uzoamaka Aniunoh, Efa Iwara, Kalu Ikeagwu, Chinyere Wilfred, Gloria Anozie-Young among others. 

The AMVCA-nominated Flawsome was launched in November. The series centres on four ambitious women, played by Bisola Aiyeola, Ini Dima-Okojie, Sharon Ooja and Enado Odigie, whose enduring friendship is tested as they navigate the complexities of love, career ambitions and life in Lagos. The 13-part drama series, created and directed by Tola Odunsi also stars Gabriel Afolayan, John Dumelo, Baaj Adebule, Iretiola Doyle, Toyin Abraham, Chris Attoh, Ali Nuhu, Joselyn Dumas, and Shine Rosman. 

To end the year, Crime and Justice Lagos was released in December. The police procedural crime drama follows the elite detectives of the fictional Serious and Special Crimes Unit (SSCU) as they investigate high-profile cases across the complex social landscape of Lagos. Lead superintendents Kelechi “KC” Farasin (Folu Storms) and Danladi Dikko (Jammal Ibrahim) led the team, confronting everything from ritualistic murders and human trafficking to ritual secret societies. The series is set against the backdrop of Lagos, highlighting the unique pulse, challenges, and cultural dynamics of the city. The series sharply captures and critiques the tension between the city’s upper-class spaces, working-class Nigerians and the institutional hurdles and illusion of seeking true justice in Nigeria. 

Wura

2023 opened with what has become Showmax’s most popular and audience-beloved telenovela, Wura. The telenovela is an adaptation of the South African soap opera The River that explores the ruthless life of Wura Amoo-Adeleke, the CEO of the fictional Frontline Gold Mine in Iperindo, Osun State. Wura’s cutthroat ambition and double life threaten to destroy her family and business empire. The telenovela was followed by Agu, a limited series on the age-long conflict between tradition and modernity. The six-part legal drama series follows a desperate defense attorney and his estranged prosecutor daughter, fighting on opposite sides of the law. The series blends the structured intricacies of the law with deeply rooted supernatural elements and traditional African mysticism. In December, Edward Uka’s School Run, Showmax’s first Nigerian Original film, premiered. The feature film follows the desperate search of a workaholic couple whose young son goes missing after a major school pickup mishap. As they plunge into the chaotic Lagos underbelly to find him, the estranged parents are forced to confront their own failures and learn what parenthood truly means. 

Showmax’s series also reflects topical cultural and economic subjects in Nigeria. In the northern Nigerian-set Sadau Sisters, which stars Nigerian actress Rahama Sadau and her sisters, Aisha, Fatima and Zainab, the 13-part unscripted reality series offers an intimate look into the lives of a Kannywood actress and her three distinct sisters. Together, they confront intense public controversies, navigate the pressures of modern stardom and address long-held family traumas in a quest for healing. In the show, they wade through the complexities of sisterhood against a sturdy cultural backdrop, reveal gripping insight into themselves, and tackle family traumas and controversies. Set against the background of cultural and religious beliefs, each episode immerses viewers in the fascinating experiences of the young and ambitious Northern Nigerian women as they manage the demands of family, career and fame. 

Sadau Sisters

Freemen is a seven-part documentary series rooted in the Igbo apprenticeship system locally known as Igba Boi. This seven-part documentary features conversation around the Igbo Apprenticeship System that has been a cornerstone of the eastern region of Nigeria for generations. The documentary features prominent Igbo businessmen such as Dr Cosmas Maduka a.k.a Coscharis, Obinna Iyiegbu popularly known as Obi Cubana, Ndubuisi Ekekwe, Okey Japan, Bartholomew Duru Nwanguma alongside his son Peter Nwanguma, and other notable entrepreneurs. These successful businessmen share their personal stories and reflections on how the Igbo Apprenticeship System shaped their careers and paved the way for their entrepreneurial success. By featuring prominent self-made tycoons, it breaks down the entire journey from the initial family negotiations to the hard-earned “freedom” settlement phase.

From 2021’s Ghana Jollof to 2025’s Between Worlds, Showmax Nigeria’s original programming revealed its interest in serving as a crucial vehicle for representative storytelling, capturing, critiquing, and contextualizing the nation’s regional and ethnic landscapes. The productions moved beyond the historically Lagos-centric gaze of mainstream Nollywood to Abuja, Osun, Abeokuta, and other states. Freemen illuminates the profound cultural and economic blueprint of the southeastern Igbo apprenticeship system (Igba Boi), while telenovela Wura dives into the socio-economic realities of gold mining communities in Osun State. The unscripted reality of Sadau Sisters provides an essential, rare window into modern Northern Nigerian womanhood, challenging monolithic assumptions about the region. Together with The Real Housewives of Lagos and The Real Housewives of Abuja, which present highly stylized, contrasting portraits of elite life across Nigeria’s political and economic power centers, Showmax presented a rich, multi-textured mosaic of contemporary Nigerian identity and life. 

What Showmax ultimately got right was treating regional specificity not as a secondary consideration, but as the core engine of premium storytelling. By investing in local creators, filmmakers and studios with deep cultural fluency, the platform achieved sustained relevance and strong emotional resonance with diverse audiences across its markets. Its hyper-local commissioning strategy demonstrated a clear appetite for narratives rooted in specific lived realities, languages and socio-political contexts.

Following its 2023 partnership with Comcast’s NBCUniversal and Sky, and a 2024 relaunch powered by Peacock technology alongside new offerings such as a mobile-only Premier League package, Showmax entered a new phase of global technical alignment. However, after sustained financial pressures and CANAL+’s acquisition of MultiChoice in September 2025, the platform was officially discontinued on 30 April 2026. Its originals have since been folded into DStv Stream, marking not an end to the commissioning philosophy, but a structural shift in how it is delivered, scaled and sustained within a broader MultiChoice and CANAL+ ecosystem. 

MultiChoice has entered a transformative new chapter under the parent umbrella of the CANAL+ Group. Amidst this dynamic shifting landscape, the priority for local films and series is to be seamlessly channeled through DStv Stream, the digital home designed and designated to ensure these diverse African stories retain their expansive reach and institutional backing. By integrating robust digital streaming with traditional broadcast infrastructure, MultiChoice and Canal+ continue to nurture the entire creative value chain—from regional writers’ rooms to technical field crews, solidifying authentic African representation as both a vital cultural asset and a sustainable economic engine for the long term. Importantly, the Showmax Nigeria Originals now live on DStv Stream.