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by Thinus Ferreira
MultiChoice and M-Net will do another season of reality show Big Brother Mzansi that will start on 12 January 2025 and run until 23 March, with M-Net which says it will do "devious things" and make the contestants extremely uncomfortable.
On Thursday afternoon MultiChoice and M-Net's Mzansi Magic (DStv 161) channel held an official media launch event at its MultiChoice City headquarters in Randburg, Johannesburg for a certain group of media and influencers which it didn't bother to tell broader media would be happening.
To those who attended and sat in MultiChoice City's cinema venue, Shirley Adonisi, M-Net director of local entertainment channels, said "We're really going to make the housemates uncomfortable".
"We're experimenting with things never done before. We're determined to make them as uncomfortable as possible. We’re really pushing the envelope. We'll test their intolerance to see how much they can take without breaking any legal rules. The team has come up with devious things."
The upcoming Big Brother Mzansi season is produced and conceptualised with the theme of "Umlilo" meaning "fire" in isiZulu.
Big Brother Mzansi "Umlilo" is the fifth season of the show under this moniker but the 11th season overall of Big Brother done by M-Net in South Africa according to the Banijay format.
The upcoming Big Brother Mzansi season will once again be produced by Red Pepper Pictures.
Besides strands on Mzansi Magic (DStv 161) and MultiChoice's video streaming service Showmax, Big Brother Mzansi will also again run as a 24-hour linear TV channel on DStv channel 198 until the finale on 23 March 2025.
Lawrence Maleka has been replaced by Afrika Mdutyulwa, known as Smash Afrika, as the host for the fifth season.
It's not known what he said at MultiChoice and M-Net's media launch event on Thursday and Mzansi Magic didn't share comments or a transcript or include any quotes in a press release.
In a press release quote, Christinah Mazibuko, the M-Net group of channels' head of marketing and publicity, says "We're incredibly excited to bring Big Brother
Mzansi back for the fifth season".
"This season is about pushing boundaries, and
with the Umlilo theme, we're sure to give our viewers a hot, unmissable
experience. Working with Smash Afrika as the host takes the energy to a whole
new level, and we can't wait to see how his charisma sparks more fires in the
house. It's going to be an unforgettable ride."
Previous seasons of Big Brother Mzansi, including the last, have all filled with controversy with housemates evicted previously and during the last season for shocking behaviour and utterances, causing brand damage to M-Net, Mzansi Magic and sponsor LottoStar associated with it.
M-Net then contracted these people and are currently paying them to be Mzansi Magic brand ambassadors.