By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Photo by S’dumo Mtshali(@sdumo.mtshali).
From South Korea (Teach You a Lesson), from France (Lupin), from Brazil (Rulers of Fortune) and now, from South Africa with The Polygamist.
The Polygamist which debuted on Netflix June 12th has become one of our biggest African hits ever.
The 22-episode supernovela has reached #1 in 21 countries and the Top 10 in 62, amassing 27.6M views and counting.
Since opening at #2 on the Global Top 10 Non-English Shows list, the show has spent seven consecutive weeks on the list, the most ever for a Netflix title from South Africa.
The supernovela is based on the 2012 book of the same name by Zimbabwean author Sue Nyathi.
The series’ impact has extended beyond the screen, with book sales tripling following The Polygamists Netflix debut, over a decade after the book was first published.
“It feels great and it is an affirmation of my work,” Nyathi tells Fullview of world’s reception to her story. “Of all my books, The Polygamist was dismissed as fluff. … To hear people call it a masterpiece and being able to draw so many life lessons from it is incredible.”
The series, which centers on a social media darling whose cheating husband’s conquests ignite a scandalous emotional meltdown, was filmed with Stained Glass Productions over nearly 100 days in South Africa. Roughly 150 cast and crew and over 70 extras and daily hires were employed on the production, in addition to more than 45 local vendors.
“We were so specific and so particular in the story we’re telling,” said Gugu Zuma-Ncube, executive producer at Stained Glass Productions. “It’s set against a backdrop of polygamy, which is very African — and the more authentic we were to that, the more universally appealing and relatable the themes became.
Polygamy may not be the most common framework for a global audience, but the themes that the show covers – love, adultery, betrayal, struggling with feelings of self-worth, kids feeling they aren’t being met emotionally by their parents, coming‑of‑age – they definitely have universal appeal.”
Beyond The Polygamist, Nyathi says the Netflix series has helped “broaden” her readership. The same week The Polygamist hit #1 on the Exclusive Books’ Top 10 Bestsellers list in South Africa, her 2020 novel A Family Affair reached #6. The first run of her 2024 work, An Angel’s Demise, also sold out following The Polygamist’s Netflix debut, after only selling 2,500 copies in its first two years of release.
“The show’s popularity “has opened doors for me,” Nyathi said. “This series has given me the kind of visibility that writers from the deep south only dream of.”
The Polygamist is one of several adaptations currently heating up our Global Top 10 lists, also including I Will Find You, Little House on the Prairie, Ransom Canyon, I’m Not Afraid and The Marked Woman. Netflix not only brings these books to the screen — we also turn these stories into culture-defining moments that spark new fandoms, expand worlds and bolster book sales and audiobook streams. Learn more about our latest adaptations here.