We’re intrigued to see what the just announced partnership between MultiChoice (Showmax’s owner), Comcast’s NBCUniversal and Sky means for the future of the African streaming service and its content offering.

While we wait for further announcements about the new Showmax, here are our standout picks from local and international series, films and documentaries joining the Showmax line-up in March. We’ve cherry picked the entertainment that appeals to us, but you can find the full calendar of releases for the month here.

Series

Before we jump into the standouts of the series debuts, don’t forget that the following shows are back as well: Chucky Season 2 (binge from 10 March 2023), The Flight Attendant S2 (Binge from 13 March), and Succession S4, Mondays from 27 March.

New-generation Western The English stars Emily Blunt as Lady Cornelia Locke, an Englishwoman hell-bent on revenge, whose journey into the West in 1890 intertwines with that of Eli Whipp (Chaske Spencer), a retired Pawnee cavalry scout out to claim the land he is owed for his service in the US army. Also with Stephen Rea and Ciarán Hinds, miniseries The English is described as well-crafted and exceptionally acted.

Watch all 6 episodes of The English from 6 March.

Inspired by the 1994 film of the same name, psychological drama Swimming with Sharks centres on Lou Simms, a young female assistant at Fountain Pictures, a Hollywood studio filled with monster bosses, manipulators, schemers and intrigue. Little do they know she is poised to outwit them all. The drawcard here is Sharks’ cast, which is led by Chilling Adventures of Sabrina’s Kiernan Shipka, Diane Kruger, and Donald Sutherland.

Binge all 6 episodes of Swimming with Sharks from 10 March.

80s TV fans may be tempted to check out Quantum Leap, a 30 years later sequel to the original cult sci-fi hit of the same name. It’s been decades since Dr Sam Beckett (Scott Bakula) stepped into the Quantum Leap accelerator and vanished. Now, a new team, led by physicist Ben Song (Raymond Lee), has been assembled to restart the project – resulting in leaps across time and lives.

Binge Quantum Leap S1 in its 18-episode entirety from 24 March.

Films

Special mention must go upfront to Spencer (9 March) in which Kristen Stewart gives an Oscar-nominated performance as Princess Diana. Meanwhile, Harry Potter fans can watch the third film in the Fantastic Beasts series The Secrets of Dumbledore from 27 March. That said, below are the new movie additions we’re most excited to finally watch on a comfy couch at home.

In a weird coincidence, stylish action comedy Bullet Train also comes to Netflix this month, but from 6 March you can watch it through Showmax as well. Brad Pitt plays operative Ladybug, who finds his latest mission puts him on a bullet train from Tokyo to Kyoto with an assortment of deadly adversaries, played by the likes of Joey King, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Brian Tyree Henry and Andrew Koji. From David Leitch, the director of Deadpool 2.

The Batman is the latest big screen take on DC Comics’ iconic masked hero. This time, the emphasis is on detective work to stop a clue-dropping serial killer, and a disturbing conspiracy involving the most powerful families and figures in Gotham City. Matt Reeves writes and directs while Robert Pattinson plays Batman, Zoe Kravitz is Catwoman, Paul Dano is The Riddler, and Colin Farrell is unrecognisable as The Penguin.

Watch The Batman from 20 March.

Last year, supernatural psychological horror film Smile was a hit with critics and audiences alike, racking up over $200 million at the box office. Dr Rose Cotter (Sosie Baco) is a therapist who’s traumatised by the bizarre death of a patient. As terrifying, grinning occurrences begin taking over her life, Rose must confront her past in order to escape her horrifying new reality. In the mould of The Ring and It Follows.

Smile comes to Showmax on 23 March.

Documentaries

Stella Murders is a new true crime documentary from the makers of breakout hit Devilsdorp. This 90-minute expose delves into the deaths of best friends Sharnelle Hough (17) and Marna Engelbrecht (16) at their hostel at Stella High School in a close-knit cattle-farming community in South Africa’s North West province. While both deaths initially looked like suicides, they weren’t.

Stella Murders premieres on 17 March.