
28 August 2020
Kenyan actor Edi Gathegi stars in new mystery-drama series Briarpatch, alongside Rosario Dawson
No Kenyan actor has landed more roles in Hollywood than Edi Gathegi. From playing nomadic vampire Laurent in The Twilight Saga film series, to the mutant Darwin in X Men: First Class, to the Mormon doctor in the medical drama House (also on Showmax), to his current role as a mobster in the tech crime drama Start Up, he’s had no shortage of notable Hollywood roles. But perhaps most recognised by many Kenyan fans is his role as the slick and mysterious Cabal enforcer Mr Solomon – once touted as Raymond Reddington’s worst nightmare – in the crime thriller The Blacklist.
In his most recent TV role, Gathegi plays estate attorney AD Singe in the mystery crime series Briarpatch, streaming on Showmax.
Watch the trailer for Briarpatch
Briarpatch, from Andy Greenwald (Legion) and Mr Robot creator Sam Esmail, follows Allegra Dill (Rosario Dawson from Luke Cage), a high-powered investigator who returns to her hometown to investigate the mysterious circumstances of her sister’s death, and in the process uncovers a web of lies, conspiracies and corruption.
Gathegi’s Singe was friends with Allegra’s sister and is willing to extend the same courtesy to Allegra, but she couldn’t care less about making friends in the “poisoned shithole” she calls her hometown. She’s more interested in digging up the truth, even if she has to burn the town to the ground to get it.
An optimist in a town falling apart
Singe is described as an “iconoclast” and, more surprisingly, an “optimist” in a town where everything is in total disarray. Police officers are getting bombed in their cars, zoo animals are on the loose (if you’re unlucky, you’ll get mauled by a tiger), immigrants are crossing the border illegally, and dirty cops are everywhere.

Amid the chaos and unusual appeal of this small degenerate town, Singe is a man of casual charm and a unique fashion sense – Hawaiian shirts – and is perhaps the most sensible person in town. At times, he’s also Allegra’s voice of reason and sentimentality, telling her that it’s okay to embrace her grief and occasionally warning her to tread carefully in her quest for the truth.
Allegra, however, isn’t the kind of woman to be told what to do. You know she means business the moment she struts on screen and immediately starts asking the tough questions that everyone in town seems to be dancing around. Of course, that makes everyone a suspect, including her once-poor-now-rich childhood friend (Mad Men’s Jay R Ferguson), now a target of a senatorial investigation that Allegra is running concurrently with her sister’s murder investigation.

It’s only a matter of time before the two cases collide as Allegra digs deeper to uncover the town’s secrets and a deeply corrupt system of power seekers and double dealers.
Other than unravelling the mysteries and the web of lies, you’ll also enjoy seeing Dawson in impeccable power suits that only heighten the badass, no-nonsense woman that Allegra is.
Among Briarpatch’s cast of characters are also the ever-charming and eccentric Alan Cumming (The Good Wife) as the vengeful, sly gun runner Clyde Brattle; Kim Dickens (Fear the Walking Dead) as the politically ambitious police chief; Ed Asner (Dead To Me) as the racist and resentful owner of the town’s only newspaper; and Brian Geraghty (Chicago P.D.) as the town’s police captain.
Catch Briarpatch on Showmax.
Original African stories by local talent

The ABC Killer
The ABC Killer is a twisty true-crime documentary series about serial killer Moses Sithole. Stream from 22 July on Showmax.

What if we believed the best can come from here?
Let’s rewrite the rules of what it means to be local.

Untied S1
Untied explores the deeply personal and often complex experience of divorce, told through the voices of women who have lived it. Stream now, with new episodes every Tuesday.

Reckless S1
Reckless follows a pair of young brothers who find themselves at a crossroads when a tragic accident changes their lives forever. Stream now, with new episodes every Monday and Tuesday.

The Mommy Club NBO
The Mommy Club NBO is the fifth instalment of the record-breaking Mommy Club franchise. Stream now, with new episodes every Friday.

Empini S1-2
Empini is a high-stakes, action-packed drama set in the ruthless, corrupt world of private security. Season 2 is now streaming, with new episodes every Tuesday.

Youngins S1-2
Stream Tshedza Pictures’s first teen drama, Showmax Original Youngins. S1 and S2 are ready to binge.

The Real Housewives of Durban Seasons 1-5
Our eThekwini queens are back with a brand-new season. Stream Season 5 now, with new episodes every Friday.
SA celebs open up about divorce on Untied
The action heats up on Empini
More Mzansi gold

Eye-opening homegrown documentaries to stream
These unmissable South African shows and movies deliver surprising insights on the country we’re living in today.

20+ addictive South African reality shows to stream
Stream The Catch, The Real Housewives of Durban, The Mommy Club, and more of South Africa’s best reality shows on Showmax.

Mablerh returns to host The Real Housewives of Durban reunion
Mablerh returns to host The Real Housewives of Durban reunion for the third year in a row. The Season 5 reunion drops in two parts on Showmax, premiering 4 July and 11 July 2025.

Obstruction S1
A fiery netball superstar dreams of being noticed by the Gauteng provincial coach and playing for the national team… until her mom uproots her to a new school.