WhatsApp Jumps On Original Content Bandwagon With Movie Starring NBA's 'Greek Freak'

WhatsApp, the mobile messaging platform from Meta Platforms Inc META, has shared a trailer for a short film based on the story of National Basketball Association player Giannis Antetokounmpo.

What Happened: “Naija Odyssey” tracks the life of Antetokounmpo who is of Nigerian origin but was born in Greece.

“His whole life people have tried to tell him who he was. Now Giannis tells his "origin story of many origins" as he reconciles his roots, birthplace, and sense of belonging between cross-cultural worlds,” read the description shared by WhatsApp on YouTube.

The movie, narrated by Antetokounmpo and his mother Veronica, is set to stream on Sep. 21 on Prime Video, YouTube, and WhatsApp’s own social media channels, reported Variety.

See Also: How To Buy Meta (Formerly Facebook) Shares

Why It Matters: Antetokounmpo, known by his nickname "Greek Freak," led the Milwaukee Bucks to the NBA Finals title in 2021 and was named the All-Star MVP the same year.

The 12-minute film, Meta’s first original project, is largely a piece of branded content and builds on Antetokounmpo’s global fame in an attempt to disseminate the message that WhatsApp can foster togetherness, noted Variety.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg recently said that the company’s short-form video service, Reels, already makes up for 20% of the time people spend on its Instagram platform.

The company recently migrated resources from its News tab and newsletter platform to its short-form video and metaverse creators to better compete with TikTok.

Price Action: On Wednesday, Meta shares closed 1.1% lower at $151.47 in the regular session and rose 0.4% in the after-hours trading, according to data from Benzinga Pro.

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Photo courtesy: Keith Allison on Wikimedia

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