Narcos: Mexico is an American crime dramawebtelevision series created and produced by Chris Brancato, Carlo Bernard, and Doug Miro that premiered on Netflix on November 16, 2018. It was originally intended to be the fourth season of the Netflix series Narcos, but it was ultimately developed as a companion series. It focuses on the illegal drug trade in Mexico, whereas the parent series centered on the illegal drug trade in Colombia. On December 5, 2018, Netflix renewed the series for a second season, which premiered on February 13, 2020.
Premise
Narcos: Mexico explores the origin of the modern war on drugs, beginning at the time when Mexican traffickers were a loose and disorganized confederation of small-time independent cannabis growers and dealers. The series dramatizes the rise of the Guadalajara Cartel in the 1980s as Félix Gallardo unifies the traffickers in order to build an empire. Drug Enforcement Administration agent Kiki Camarena moves his wife and young son from California to Guadalajara to take on a new post, and he quickly learns that his assignment will be more challenging than he ever could have imagined.
Cast and characters
Main
Michael Peña as Kiki Camarena, a DEA agent who garners valuable intel about Félix's organization
renewed Narcos for two more seasons on September 6, 2016, a few days after the release of the second season. Production on the fourth season began in Mexico in late 2017, following the release of the third season. On July 18, 2018, Netflix announced that the fourth season would instead "reset" with almost an entirely new cast as a new Netflix original series titled Narcos: Mexico. The first season was released on November 16, 2018, and Netflix renewed it for a second season on December 5, 2018.
Cast and crew
In December 2017, Michael Peña and Diego Luna were announced to star in the upcoming series. A few days later, Matt Letscher joined the cast in a regular role. Other key cast members revealed by showrunner Eric Newman include Tenoch Huerta, Joaquín Cosío, Teresa Ruiz, Alyssa Diaz, and José María Yazpik. Amat Escalante and Alonso Ruizpalacios directed episodes for the upcoming series, while Colombian Andi Baiz, director of several episodes for the first three seasons of Narcos, also directed for Narcos: Mexico.
Carlos Muñoz Portal, one of the show's location scouts, was found murdered with multiple gunshot wounds on September 15, 2017 in central Mexico near the town of Temascalapa. A spokesman for the attorney general in Mexico said that there were no witnesses due to the remote location, but the authorities would continue to investigate. Authorities are considering the possibility of narco gang involvement, but the murder has not been solved.
Factual differences
Although many of the events and characters are based on true history, some liberties were taken to streamline the story of the Mexican drug war into a cohesive narrative. The murders of John Clay Walker and Albert Radelat were real; however, they were reportedly tortured beforehand. The character of Sofia Conesa, portrayed as the love interest of Rafael Caro Quintero, was named Sara Cosio in real life.
Critical reception
The first season of Narcos: Mexico has a score of 89% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 35 reviews with an average rating of 7.43/10, with the critics consensus stating "Dangerous, thrilling, and highly addictive, Narcos: Mexico's first season expertly expands the franchise by exploring new territory in the drug war's grim history and showcasing electric performances from Diego Luna and Michael Peña." On Metacritic, season one holds a weighted average score of 80 out of 100, based on 7 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".
