Best Reality Shows to Stream on Showmax

When it comes to reality television in Africa, Showmax is at the forefront of it all. Whatever you like, there are hours of reality television to keep you hooked and entertained.

Here are some reality shows to stream on Showmax:

The Real Housewives of Durban S4 Reunion Part 2

Stream from Wednesday, 22 May

In Part 1 of the reunion, we saw the ladies facing off and confronting each other on the things that have happened in the season. OG Sorisha Naidoo and newcomer Zama Ngcobo came face to face and confronted each other on why their budding friendship ended. The ladies addressed everything that viewers wanted to hear about, from age-shaming to body-shaming. Nothing was off limits.

The first season of The Real Housewives of Durban set a then-record on Showmax for the most first-day views and went on to be released in 28 territories outside Africa on hayu, not to mention on Peacock and Bravo, the original home of The Real Housewives franchise. Seasons 2 and 3 were among the 10 most streamed titles on Showmax in their launch years and are currently streaming on hayu. MaBlerh is hosting The Real Housewives of Durban reunion for the second year in a row.

The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip – South Africa S1

Mondays from 27 May

The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip – South Africa is the spinoff that fans have been waiting for, taking eight of South Africa’s most iconic Housewives on a luxury trip to Jamaica.

The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip – South Africa dream cast includes Beverley Steyn (The Real Housewives of Cape Town S1); Christall Kay (The Real Housewives of Johannesburg S1-S2); LaConco (The Real Housewives of Durban S1-S2); Lethabo Lejoy Mathatho (The Real Housewives of Johannesburg S2-S3); Liz Prins (The Real Housewives of Gqeberha S1); Londie London (The Real Housewives of Durban S2); Melany Viljoen (The Real Housewives of Pretoria S1); and the longest-serving Housewife in Africa, Nonku Williams (The Real Housewives of Durban S1-S4).

The Real Housewives of Nairobi S2

New episodes on Fridays

Named Best TV Show at the 2024 Kalasha Awards, Season 1 of The Real Houses of Nairobi had all of Kenya talking on its way to becoming the biggest Showmax Original in Kenya yet, while Season 2 has trended in Kenya every Friday since its launch.

In Season 2, actress and entrepreneur Minne Kariuki returns, along with Vera Sidika, who’s eager to reintroduce herself, and business mogul and tastemaker Dr Catherine Masitsa. They are joined by new cast members, including lawyer and professional bodybuilder Farah Esmail, beauty and aesthetics entrepreneur Xenah Nyambu, and entrepreneur Reja Keji Ladu.

Survivor S45

Binge from 22 May

Five-time Emmy Award-winning host Jeff Probst once again welcomes 18 new castaways to the idyllic Mamanuca Islands in Fiji for Season 45 of Survivor, the mega-successful grand-daddy of reality competition shows.

Now in its 24th year, the show has won seven Emmys and continues to deliver the drama as contestants are stranded in a remote location with little more than the clothes on their back. They must survive a series of gruelling challenges – and each other – for 26 days in a bid to outwit, outplay, outlast and, ultimately, become the Sole Survivor. And take home a cool $1 million, of course. This season’s line-up of castaways includes singer-songwriter J. Maya and Season 44 returnee Bruce Perreault.

Jerrod Carmichael Reality Show S1

Binge from 22 May

Jerrod Carmichael Reality Show is a darkly funny reality series about the Emmy-winning comedian’s tumultuous quest for love, sex, and truth.

The HBO Original had its world premiere at SXSW in March 2024 and currently has a 95% critics’ rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Time says, “Jerrod Carmichael Reality Show makes reality TV – hilariously, painfully – real again,” while The Hollywood Reporter says, “I laughed and covered my eyes in mortification in equal measure — and since I finished my screeners, I haven’t stopped thinking about it.”

We’re Here S4

Fridays from 24 May

In Season 4 of HBO’s Emmy, Peabody, and GLAAD award-winning unscripted series We’re Here, Sasha Velour, Priyanka, Jaida Essence Hall, and Latrice Royale continue the show’s mission of spreading love and connection across small-town America through the art of drag.

This season, the queens work with participants in Murfreesboro, Tennessee and Tulsa, Oklahoma, as well as in surrounding towns, while taking an in-depth, immersive look at recent anti-LGBTQ+ legislation and the effect it has had on the community.

Season 4 got praise from Deadline for being a light in the darkness: “In a world where the shadows of intolerance loom, the spectacle of We’re Here emerges not just as a beacon of light but as a bold declaration of presence.” The Los Angeles Times hailed it as “uniquely affirming and vital.” Wired called it “an essential reminder that queer people are fighting for justice and visibility across the US,” and Decider lauded it for managing “to find the light even in the darkest of circumstances,” proclaiming it the “most relevant reality show on television.”

The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City S4

New episodes on Thursdays

The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City peeks into the unconventional personal and professional lives of successful women navigating an ultra-exclusive social circle in Salt Lake City, Utah, where religion, status, and perfection are praised to the highest degree.

The 10th installment of the mega-successful Real Housewives franchise, The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City was nominated for an MTV TV Award for Best New Unscripted Series when it debuted in 2020. It’s been no stranger to controversy, with one cast member fired from the show for her insensitive social media posts and another now serving a six-and-a-half-year sentence in jail for wire fraud.

Season 4 is off to a salty start with new faces in the Housewives’ exclusive circle, as Angie introduces Monica Garcia (who used to work for Jen Shah), in a development that the LA Times says has “made The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City unhinged, unmissable TV.”

You can watch all these and other exciting reality shows including; Love Undercover S1, The Bachelorette S20, Bachelor in Paradise S9, and LA Fire & Rescue on www.showmax.com.