By Our Reporter
A powerful Kampala family, a contested inheritance and a mysterious collapse set the stage for The Last Mugerwa, a new Ugandan drama that explores what happens when wealth and influence begin to unravel under the weight of buried secrets.
Created and directed by Ugandan filmmaker Allan Manzi, the film follows the Mugerwa family, a wealthy and influential dynasty whose carefully maintained image begins to crumble after its patriarch, Mzee Mugerwa, collapses following a haunting encounter with his ancestors.
What first appears to be a medical emergency soon becomes a mystery. While doctors struggle to explain what happened, suspicion grows within the family that the patriarch’s death may have been orchestrated.
The question of who stands to inherit his wealth further deepens the conflict, turning family loyalty into a struggle for survival.
At the heart of the approximately 30-minute film is a family whose problems extend beyond money. Affairs, fractured relationships, secret alliances and a buried truth threaten to destroy the family from within.
The film also introduces a supernatural element, linking the family’s present troubles to a dark pact made in the past and the consequences of ancestral debt.
The story brings together themes familiar to Ugandan audiences, including family structures, business ambitions and the struggle for power, while placing them within a suspense-driven narrative.
Manzi Media, the production company behind the project, says the film is part of its effort to tell African stories with both local authenticity and international appeal. The production draws on African family structures and business dynasties to examine questions of loyalty, ambition and what people are willing to do to protect their interests.
The film features a cast drawn from Uganda and Kenya, including Allen Komujuni, Ronnie Ndubi, Malaika, RiverDan Rugaju, Diana Luvanda, Evelyn Kemizinga, Pelly Peninah Nampanga, Arnold Muhereza, Stephen Katusiime, Linda Kayitesi Kayita and Herbert Montez Kafrika, who plays Mr Mugerwa. Jeremiah Khari Okeny is also introduced in the production.
Evelyn Kemizinga plays Mercy Mugerwa, the family’s matriarch, who tries to keep her fractured household together while protecting a secret capable of destroying everything they have built.
Malaika plays Sarah Mugerwa, a reserved but intelligent chief financial officer whose abilities begin to emerge as the secrets surrounding her husband threaten the life she has built. Ronnie Ndubi takes on the role of Adrian Semakula, an ambitious senior executive caught between competing factions in the Mugerwa power struggle.
Behind the camera, Manzi serves as director and executive producer, with Peter Niwagaba as writer and producer, Malaika Tenshi as line producer and Emmanuel Gashumba as director of photography.
Manzi’s filmmaking career began at Maisha Film Lab before he earned a master’s degree in Film and Television from Sacred Heart University in New York. He has also worked with NBCUniversal on Emmy Award-winning programmes including Maury, Jerry Springer and Master of None.
Unlike many locally produced dramas that seek a television home, The Last Mugerwa is being released directly to YouTube. The film is scheduled to premiere on September 6, 2026.
For Ugandan audiences, the film offers a familiar setting with a darker twist: a family empire where the greatest danger may not come from an outsider, but from the people sitting around the same dinner table.