Nomzamo Mbatha, Gail Mabalane, Thuso Mbedu and More Bag 2026 Africa Choice Awards Nominations
- The Africa Choice Awards are officially making a return, and some South African stars have received recognition
- Nomzamo Mbatha, Gail Mabalane and Thuso Mbedu are among the stars who've been nominated at the prestigious event
- Fans erupted in cheers and celebrated their favourite stars' nominations ahead of the big day
Source: Instagram
The Africa Choice Awards are making their grand return in 2026, with the event officially coming to South Africa.
Celebrated as one of the continent's most prestigious ceremonies, the ACAs honour the stars who have made an impact in the creative, entertainment and fashion industries. This year, some big names in Mzansi were recognised for their excellence.
Talented Shaka iLembe stars Nomzamo Mbatha and Dawn Thandeka King, along with Gail Mabalane, Kgomotso Christopher, Thuso Mbedu and Enhle Mbali, each earned themselves nominations in the Female Movie Star of the Year category.
Celebrated for carrying the stories that defined the year in African cinema, the ladies are nominated among other African stars, making it a very tight competition.
Source: Instagram
Film stars Lilian Afegbai, Bambam Olawunmi-Adenibuyan, Stella Damasus, and Jemima Osunde are representing Nigeria in the category and are each bringing their years of experience and unmatched talent to the contest.
The seventh edition of the Africa Choice Awards will officially take place in 2026, but the exact date has yet to be confirmed. Voting lines will soon be open.
What makes the event special is that the winners are decided by the people, with fans given the opportunity to vote online for their favourite stars.
Voting officially starts on Monday, 13 October 2025, and anticipation is already building as supporters look forward to seeing their faves get the recognition they deserve.
See the full list of nominees below:
Social media reacts to ACA nominations
Fans and followers weighed in on the nominees and agreed that the competition was extremely tight. Read some of their comments below:
uyathandwa_khuzwayo said:
"Yoh, tough one ke le. May the best women win!"
lunihle wrote:
"@gail_mabalane, she has to!"
aklaas2025 compared the nominees:
"This one is tough!"
Source: Instagram
zam.zung00 showed support for Thuso Mbedu:
"Rooting for @thuso.mbedu."
mbali_qokose was conflicted:
"Yhoo, this one is difficult! They all deserve the award."
Many more supporters took to the comments section declaring their favourite star as the most deserving of the award, making for an interesting competition.
With fans given the opportunity to control the votes, the battle of the fanbases has been set to see which star's supporters truly invest in their craft.
Miss South Africa pulls out of Miss Universe
In an earlier report, Briefly News shared a bombshell announcement by the Miss South Africa organisation about the 2025 winner not competing in the Miss Universe pageant.
The organisation, which crowned its first deaf winner, Mia Le Roux, in 2024, explained the complexities of the contests and why the 2025 pageant would be much different.
Social media speculated about the "real reason" behind the decision, with many people questioning the organisation’s principles.
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Source: Briefly News
