Reminder: ID Africa Sets Premiere Date For Highly Anticipated Follow-Up Docuseries, The Curious Case Of Natalia Grace: Natalia Speaks, Featuring Exclusive Access To Natalia Barnett

Investigation Discovery, the leading true crime network, has launched a new chapter in the twisted family saga of Natalia Grace Barnett, THE CURIOUS CASE OF NATALIA GRACE: NATALIA SPEAKS, which will premiere in Africa on Sunday, 28 January.

 

Picking up where the shocking finale of THE CURIOUS CASE OF NATALIA GRACE left off, NATALIA SPEAKS dives headfirst into the questions, controversies, and secrets unearthed in the first instalment, but this time, Natalia shares her side of the story. The six-part docuseries will also showcase an extensive, emotional sit-down between Natalia and her adoptive father, Michael Barnett, as they sit face-to-face for the first time and come to terms with the accusations that have been thrown around in both directions. THE CURIOUS CASE OF NATALIA GRACE: NATALIA SPEAKS will premiere two new episodes every Sunday at 21:00 CAT starting on 28 January and continuing through 11 February.

 

“When THE CURIOUS CASE OF NATALIA GRACE premiered in 2023, audiences were insatiably compelled by this twisted, confounding saga, making it one of ID’s most-viewed new series across cable and streaming. This story is far from over, and it’s clear our viewers have many more questions they want answered. NATALIA SPEAKS is our response to that demand and offers Natalia’s perspective to this stranger-than-fiction mystery,” said Jason Sarlanis, President, Turner Networks, ID & HLN, Linear and Streaming Warner Bros. Discovery. 

 

THE CURIOUS CASE OF NATALIA GRACE: NATALIA SPEAKS offers exclusive access to Natalia Grace Barnett as she shares her story and confronts her former adoptive parents, Michael and Kristine Barnett’s accusations head-on. Over the course of six parts, NATALIA SPEAKS retraces her adoption saga and the Barnett’s allegations from Natalia’s perspective, offering insight into what really went on behind closed doors in the Barnett’s home and how much truth there actually is to their claim Natalia was not a 6-year-old Ukrainian orphan with a rare genetic disorder, but rather a homicidal adult intent on harming them and their children.

 

NATALIA SPEAKS also features previously unseen evidence and footage, as well as new theories and testimony from an array of voices, including the retired FBI agents who initially investigated Natalia’s case, genetic experts who helped determine Natalia’s actual age, and the Tippecanoe County Deputy Prosecutor Jackie Starbuck who prosecuted Michael in his October 2022 trial. In addition, the docuseries sheds light on Natalia’s next chapter, offering a portrait of her life with her new adoptive family and exclusive interviews with her adoptive parents, Bishop Antown and Christina Manns.

Rumour: 1Magic (And Possible Me) To Be Replaced/Merged Onto Another TV Channel On DStv

Update: the channels will close 31 March 2024 and for an updated statement: click here 

MultiChoice is set to axe an additional two channels by early February, 1Magic and Me. The pay-tv company remains discrete on further information pertaining to these brands and have gone as far as hiding this news from DStv consumers until later this week.

In ongoing conversations with the pay-tv company, it was revealed that 1Magic will be replaced with another channel unlike Me. Considering that these terminations sort of affect consumers on the Family and Compact bouquet it's likely that this channel will be accessible to them.

Following the cancellation of 1Magic, there had been questions pertaining on how MultiChoice intended to distribute The Real Housewives and retain their black premium subscribers who'd view content like Power Book 4: Force Beat Shazam and 1802: Love Defies Time.

As I hypothesised in early stories, MultiChoice and M-Net are probably looking to substitute 1Magic (and possible Me) with a more robust offering. M-Net is filtered to the audience of SABC 3 and 1Magic was one way they could position themselves to SABC 1 and Mzansi Magic.

If anything, it's likely that this channel will offer the best of Me and 1Magic (which were basically VUZU and M-Net City) in one space. That is if all this turns out to be accurate, as mentioned they are looking to officially update consumers later this week on the fate of these channels.

New Channel Alert: Africa's First Housing Channel Debuts On StarTimes Channel 149, To Launch On DStv By March 2024

During the month, Nigeria’s leading affordable housing advocate, Festus Adebayo had announced the establishment of a first of its kind African home channel, Housing TV Africa. It is set to take on brands like HGTV and The Home Channel with a curated local offering.

According to a press statement, the purpose of establishing Housing TV Africa on StarTimes Channel 149 is basically to bring awareness campaigns down to various homes in Africa.

He further stated that the TV channel was to be extended to DStv before the end of 2023, until it was delayed to March 2024. Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Arc. Ahmed Musa Dangiwa would have marketed the launch on the pay-tv platform had it launched earlier.

Housing TV Africa will have 65% housing related contents, leaving the remaining 35% to contents around educative, political, sports, religion, entertainment, among others. Basically, it will not only be duplicating The Home Channel but Soweto TV as well.

In other developments, MultiChoice will be axing both 1Magic and Me from the DStv platform by early February. They served as M-Net's remaining linear offering to boost an extensive line-up of international content with the latter now folded under existing linear channels and Showmax.

Live-Action Danny Phantom Film Is Reportedly In Development

An iconic animated series may soon be making its way back to our screens in a new form. According to insider Daniel Richtman, a live-action Danny Phantom film is in development at Paramount.

Danny Phantom is an animated series that first premiered on Nickelodeon in 2004, netting fifty-three episodes across three seasons. Created by Butch Hartman (The Fairly OddParents), the series followed the adventures of a teenager named Danny Fenton, who gains various superpowers like flight and invisibility after an accident in his ghost-hunting obsessed parents' laboratory. Despite his initial hesitation, Danny eventually learns to embrace his powers and commits to becoming a superhero to defend his family, friends Tucker Foley and Sam Manson, and hometown from the threat of malevolent ghosts from the Ghost Zone.

The show bears many similarities to Sony's Ghostbusters, including some of the equipment used in the series, as well as Marvel's Spider-Man series, with both protagonists forced to juggle the responsibilities of being a superhero along with the everyday mundanities of being a teenager. This timeless formula proved to be a success as Danny Phantom has retained a solid following since its finale aired well over a decade ago.

Although the series ended in 2007, Danny Phantom has remained in the hearts of fans, and has seen a few comebacks in recent years, including most recently as characters in the Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl franchise as well as a graphic novel, "A Glitch In Time".

Ricthman did not reveal any further information about the film, such as a creative team or potential timeline. It seems the project is still in very early development; it may be some time before any additional news regarding the movie is announced. It remains to be seen if the film will receive a theatrical release or premiere on Paramount+.

Interestingly, Grey DeLisle (The Loud House), who provided the voice of 'Sam' in Danny Phantom, hinted back in 2016 that Nickelodeon were planning to make a live-action Danny Phantom movie.

The news also comes as Nickelodeon is revisiting many of its iconic properties, including the recently released Zoey 102 and Good Burger 2 movies, as well as revivals of Fairly OddParents and iCarly. Nickelodeon has also rebooted Rugrats and Blue's Clues, and will be launching its rebooted Dora the Explorer series later this year, along with a The Thundermans revival movie. A Henry Danger movie is also in the works, as well as new Avatar: The Last Airbender projects.

It's important to note that, at the time of posting, nothing official has been confirmed so far, so it's worth taking it all with a pinch of salt.

More About M-Net's Me And 1Magic's Closure On DStv

Update: the channels will close 31 March 2024 and for an updated statement: click here 

During the week, we recieved word from various DStv consumers that MultiChoice will be axing both M-Net Essentials (ME) and 1Magic by February 2nd, 2024. In an enquiry, we were able to retrieve confirmation of the terminations which comes weeks before the demise of Emmanuel TV.

Since then, 1Magic has been allocating more airtime to their remaining shows while repeating past programs. Me on the other similar to The River on 1Magic, has been trying to wrap up remaining shows like And Just Like That and Lucky Hank in the form of a double bill.

An official statement from MultiChoice:

This is in line with our strategy to continuously review international and local content line-ups and optimise the suite of channels on offer on DStv. Due to this, we will bid farewell to 1Magic and Me. This is done to ensure we deliver unbeatable content to our consumers and that our services cater for the needs and viewing requirements of our customers.

MultiChoice is looking to produce more channels but it remains to be seen whether any of the content viewed on 1Magic and Me will be accessible on these channels. We presume they could require assistance of Ngwato Nkosi Group as seen with Movie Room and Play Room.

By early February, fans of crime and medical dramas on Me can tune into Universal TV for Chicago PD, Magnum Pi, Transplant and The Equalizer. Sitcoms such as Young Sheldon and Bob Hearts Abishola (both of which are ending) can be viewed on Comedy Central.

As for 1Magic, fans of local dramas can tune into the new series Champions on Mzansi Magic this February while 1802: Love Defies Time is streaming on Showmax. Other productions on the platforms include My Brother's Keeper, Gqeberha: The Empire and uThando Nes'Thembu.

MultiChoice will be revamping the Showmax streaming service in a joint venture with NBCUniversal. Serving as the streaming service made by Africans for Africans will feature content from Universal Pictures, NBC, Peacock, DreamWorks Animation and Telemundo. 

The Real Housewives is an NBC property and as such will fold under the streamer with variants being divided amongst M-Net's linear offering. Same applies to international variants viewed on these channels: Bel-Air, Beat Shazam and Power Book 4: Force.