Narcos: Mexico is an American crime drama television 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 development of Mexico's illegal drug trade, whereas the parent series centered on the establishment of Colombia's illegal drug trade. The series' second season premiered on February 13, 2020.[1] On October 28, 2020, Netflix renewed the series for a third and final season but announced that actor Diego Luna would not be returning to reprise his role as Félix Gallardo.[2] The third and final season premiered on November 5, 2021.[3]
The series explores the early origins of the Mexican drug war, beginning at the time when traffickers were a loose and disorganized confederation of small, independent marijuana growers and dealers. It dramatizes the creation and rise of the Guadalajara Cartel in the 1980s as Miguel Ángel Félix Gallardo (Diego Luna) unifies several plazas, or territories, in order to build an infamous drug empire. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agent Kiki Camarena (Michael Peña) moves his wife and young son from California to Guadalajara to take on a new post, where he quickly learns that his assignment will be more challenging than he could ever have imagined.[4] Following Camarena's torture and murder by the cartel, DEA agent Walt Breslin brings a small covert squad of operatives to Mexico to track down and punish Gallardo and his associates.
Netflix renewed Narcos for two more seasons on September 6, 2016, a few days after the release of the second season.[7] 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.[4]
The first season was released on November 16, 2018,[8] and Netflix renewed it for a second season on December 5, 2018.[9]
In December 2017, Michael Peña and Diego Luna were announced to star in the upcoming series.[10] A few days later, Matt Letscher joined the cast in a regular role.[11] Other key cast members revealed by showrunner Eric Newman include Tenoch Huerta, Joaquín Cosío, Teresa Ruiz, Alyssa Diaz, and José María Yazpik (reprising his role from the third season of Narcos).[12]
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.[12] Actor Wagner Moura, who portrayed Pablo Escobar in the original Narcos also directed two episodes of season three. In October 2020, it was announced that Eric Newman had left as showrunner.[13]
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.[14][15] 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.[16] Authorities are considering the possibility of narco gang involvement,[17] but the murder has not been solved.[12]
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.[18] The character of Sofia Conesa, portrayed as the love interest of Rafael Caro Quintero, was named Sara Cosio in real life. The killing of Hector Luis Palma's family on the orders of Miguel Angel Felix Gallardo is also a disputed claim which still needs documented verification, as it is actually believed to have been done on the orders of the Arellano Félix brothers and in a more brutal fashion. The assassination of El Azul in Season 3 did not actually occur, as El Azul in real life was active until at least 2014, when his unconfirmed death of a heart attack supposedly occurred.[citation needed]
In the third season, General Gutiérrez Rebollo, the Anti-Drug Czar, is arrested after Andrea Núñez finds the bank account receiving over US$2 million and linking it to Rebollo. In reality, General Gutiérrez Rebollo received a call from the Secretary of Defense, General Enrique Cervantes, who ordered him to report to his office immediately on the night of February 6, 1997 where he was arrested.[19] Also in this season, the men of the Tijuana Cartel escaped from the Guadalajara airport in a TAESA plane, allegedly owned by Carlos Hank González, after the murder of Cardenal Juan Jesús Posadas Ocampo. However, Carlos Hank González was never the owner of this airline and there are multiple theories about the escape of the Tijuana Cartel that day, none of which effectively link TAESA to the case.[20] Likewise, there are a series of accusations against Hank Gonzalez linking him to organized crime that have no basis in real life. Hank has never been prosecuted or sentenced for such links. The reason, according to José María Yazpik, is that "since Hank is already dead, his name can be used, while in other seasons, when faced with a possible lawsuit, they opted to change the names".[21]
The first season of Narcos: Mexico has a score of 90% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 39 reviews with an average rating of 7.4/10, 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."[22] On Metacritic, season one holds a weighted average score of 80 out of 100, based on 7 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[23]
The second season holds a rating of 81% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 16 reviews with a weighted average score of 7.6/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "As addictive -- and relevant -- as ever, Narcos: Mexico's sophomore season is definitely more violent, but it never spoils the rich drama fans have come to love."[24]
The third and final season holds a score of 100% on Rotten Tomatoes based on seven reviews with an average rating of 7/10.[25]
Media related to Narcos: Mexico at Wikimedia Commons