Outlaws’ Keketso Mpitso on his breakthrough role as Tlali

Outlaws, one of Showmax’s 10 most popular series of 2023, reaches its nail-biting finale on Wednesday, 17 January 2024.

As Tlali, Keketso Mpitso has been one of the breakout stars from the show, cracking News24’s list of Breakout Talent That Brought Their A-Game in 2023. 

Watch the trailer for Outlaws

We caught up with Keketso to find out more about the hit show, which follows two families at war: the Zulu, cattle-farming Biyelas and the Basotho, cattle-raiding Ts’eoles. 

Could you describe your character?

I am portraying the character of Tlali. He’s unpredictable, a guy who just wants to do things on his own terms. You’d swear that he listened to you but he doesn’t. He’s a person who reacts quickly to situations.

He’s a very ambitious person. I think he wants to achieve a lot of things and he doesn’t really think. When he wants to do something, he wants to do it at that moment. Whenever his mind is made up, no one can convince him otherwise. He just goes for what he wants. 

I’ve been around people who have Tlali in them; I’ve seen people in real life who are like that. 

What drew you to the character?

I think it’s because I’ve never played a character like Tlali before. He’s different, and I thought to myself, this is going to be a nice challenge for me. So I just went for it.

What are some of the differences between you and the character?

I’m an introvert, and he’s more of an extrovert. I’m more calm and he’s just up there. 

This is your breakout role. How was it playing alongside veterans like Mmabatho Mogomotsi and Siyabonga Shibe?

You know, when I was a kid I grew up watching Mmabatho in Yizo Yizo and Siyabonga Shibe in Gaz’lam. They are like legends to me. So it’s been an honour and a great opportunity. I love them so much. When you get to work with them, it feels amazing. It’s more like a dream come true.

What has been the biggest lesson you’ve learnt from them or by just watching them?

One of the things I’ve learnt from them is that you have to stay humble. They treat everybody equally, and take their work very seriously. They understand what it means to be an actor.

Do you have any funny or crazy stories you’d like to tell about being on set?

Yes, I mean there are so many stories. We always laughed on set. I think the funny one was when I did a scene with Musa Mabote and he did something that I wasn’t expecting. So before we shoot, we rehearse, but when we were shooting, he just came up with something spontaneously and I wanted to laugh but I couldn’t. As soon as they said cut, I was laughing.

Tell us more about Outlaws?

Outlaws is a very nice show. It’s about a Zulu family and a Sotho family. Without saying much, all I can say is that there’s war. But people have to watch the show to find out.

All the episodes of Outlaws are now available to binge-watch on Showmax.