IShowSpeed, the streamer born Darren Watkins Jr., has partnered with Barack and Michelle Obama’s Higher Ground and Breakwater Studios to bring Ben Proudfoot’s documentary The Eyes of Ghana to theaters for a one-night-only screening on October 28, Variety reports exclusively. Participating theater chains include Regal, AMC, Cinemark, and select independent cinemas across the U.S. and Canada.
The documentary follows Ghanaian cinematographer Chris Hesse, who served as personal cameraperson to Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana’s first president and a leading figure in the African liberation movement. As his eyesight declines, Hesse works to rescue more than 1,000 films documenting Africa’s independence movements throughout the 1950s and ’60s, footage that remained hidden for decades following Nkrumah’s 1996 overthrow. The film, partially shot in IMAX 65mm, premiered at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival.
IShowSpeed’s involvement reflects a broader shift in how digital creators are using their built-in audiences to drive people into theaters, a model that’s increasingly proving financially viable outside traditional studio marketing. Markiplier’s self-distributed Iron Lung earlier this year turned a $3 million budget into $50 million worldwide largely through fan mobilization, and Speed’s reach, more than 200 million followers across platforms, positions this documentary to tap into an audience built far outside typical arthouse or historical documentary circles. For a film centered on preserving African independence history, that kind of audience crossover could meaningfully expand who actually encounters this story.
Speed, who said he felt “a profound connection to Ghana” after visiting the country this year, is one of several producers on the film alongside Proudfoot, Nana Adwoa Frimpong, Moses Bwayo, Anita Afonu, Brandon Somerhalder, Ethan Lewis, and Vinnie Malhotra. Executive producers include Barack and Michelle Obama, Sir John Akomfrah, Kofi Amoo-Gottfried, Paula Madison, and several others. Lewis, head of nonfiction at Higher Ground, said the film speaks to “the power of film to preserve our collective memory.”
With tickets now available through the film’s official site, the real test will be whether Speed’s audience, largely built around gaming, stunts, and livestream content, shows up for a historical documentary the same way Markiplier’s fans did for genre horror.