Moshidi Motshegwa: “I’m not on The River anymore”

Oh no, say it ain’t so! It looks like Moshidi Motshegwa, who plays Malefu on The River, is leaving the show. The talented South African actress who’s had viewers glued to their screens for years dropped a huge bomb on Radio 702 recently, telling Azania Mosaka that she will no longer be part of the hit show.

“I’m not on The River anymore. I’m not on the second season. My contract ended last year,” she revealed.

The actress continued: “The most amazing thing for me (was) working with Presley (Chweneyagae, who plays Cobra on the show) and Matshepo (Sekgopi, who plays Dimpho), that household because what we did was improv, what we did was stage. We took stage and said we’re gonna put it on TV.”

Moshidi added that they are the best cast she’s worked with. “Without a doubt, especially Presley and Matshepo.”

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When asked why she’s leaving the show, Moshidi told Azania: “They said they don’t have a story for Malefu. It’s as simple as that. That’s what the producers said, I’m repeating what I was told. And also, it’s very important that for me, the most important thing is that I came back, I did the work, I did at the level I wanted. I have no regrets of the work I’ve done and the work I’ve put out. So for me when they said they don’t have a story I said ‘okay, thank you, it was great’.”

Although she’s no longer part of the telenovela, Moshidi is grateful for having played such a powerful character. “I think Malefu came into my life at the right time. I’d been away for five years from screen, it came just after my dad died… My mom and I started to talk about what really happens when somebody dies in black families, and how the grieving process, just what happens.” She added that her mother told her that there’s an underrepresentation of the black widow.

“So, because of that conversation with my mom, I think I came to the role with so much more – with thought, I really thought about her… I really wanted to live, to breathe, to be a fully rounded character because she could have easily become a stereotype,” she said.

The role earned Moshidi a nomination in the Best Actress category at this year’s South African Film and Television Awards (SAFTAs).

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— South African Film & Television Awards #SAFTAs (@SAFTAs_1) February 8, 2019

Speaking about the nod, she said: “I think the wonderful thing about awards, I’ve come to understand, the nomination for me is bigger than the award because is says people recognised you.”

The River scored 18 nominations including Best Achievement in Scriptwriting and Best Telenovela.

Not sure why the show has everybody’s attention? Watch The River on Showmax to see what the hype is all about. New episodes air 15 minutes after the DStv broadcast.

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