From the creators of Money Heist comes this new action-packed series characterized by dark humor, adrenaline-filled moments and female revenge. After attempting to kill Romeo, pimp and owner of Club Las Novias in Tenerife, Spain, the three prostitutes Coral, Wendy and Gina go on the run in search of freedom while being chased by Moisés and Christian, henchmen of Romeo. Together, the women embark on a frenetic race during which they will have to face many dangers. Their only plan: to stay alive for five more minutes.
Who’s in the cast of the new Spanish Netflix show? Which Argentinian superstar? And which new cast member of Money Heist 5? Discover 27 Facts About Sky Rojo.
27 FACTS ABOUT SKY ROJO
Dark humor, action, adrenaline and female revenge. That is the promise of Sky Rojo, the new title from Netflix that premiered worldwide on 19 March 2021.
Sky Rojo Season 2 will premier internationally on 23 July 2021.
The first season adopts an innovative format for a drama series, with eight fast-paced, 25-minute episodes and a mix of genres that Álex Pina and Esther Martínez Lobato, its creators and executive producers, have dubbed Latin Pulp Fiction.
“We wanted Sky Rojo to have the same frenetic action as always, but to use that 25-minute runtime to underline the dynamic nature of the plot: the getaway, the race for survival. The third act of a movie or an episode is where all the energy converges to produce the most vibrant explosion of all the conflicts that are being narrated. What we set out to do was to make a constant third act, to funnel our entire story through that frenzied energy”, say Álex Pina and Esther Martínez Lobato.
Filmed on location in Madrid and Tenerife (Spain), Sky Rojo has two confirmed eight-episode seasons.
The series is produced by Vancouver Media for Netflix. The Spanish television production company, which was founded in 2016 by Álex Pina, has produced La casa de papel, known as Money Heist in English, the world’s most watched non-English Neflix series.
The cast is headed by four Spanish actors and two Latin American actresses: Verónica Sánchez (The Pier, 13 Roses), Asier Etxeandia (Pain and Glory, Velvet), Miguel Ángel Silvestre (Velvet, Sense8), the Argentine singer and actress Lali Espósito (Casi Ángeles, Esperanza Mía), Cuban actress Yany Prado (La doble vida de Estela Carrillo, La reina soy yo) and Enric Auquer (La línea invisible, Perfect Life).
In a video interview, Lali Espósito revealed: “It is a subject that not many people dare to talk about. Three women, who are victims of human trafficking, escape from their pimp. This modern slavery happens in every country, and therefore, it’s corageous and important to talk about it.”
During the chaotic journey, in which they face dangers of all kinds and live every second as if it were their last, the three women strengthen their friendship and discover the most important thing: that together they are stronger and have more options to recover their lives.
ANTONIO BANDERA’S LOVER & THE PROFESSOR’S WIFE
Véronica Sánchez plays Coral, an intelligent and sophisticated woman who holds a university degree in biology. She enters Club Las Novias of her own free will, needing a place to lay low and knowing that she won’t be found there. It’s that same self-destructive streak that leads her to pop pills of every description when she needs to disconnect from the world and its reality. She’s the favorite of Romeo, who sees something special in her. Her analytical mind tries to rationalize every situation, weighing the pros and cons.
“When you’re a hooker, you can live several different lives, while at the same time not having one,” she says in episode 3. She used to go to Romeo’s house to teach biology to his two daughters. And outside, Moisés would be waiting to take her on a stripping gig.
Véronica Sánchez is a 43-year old Spanish actress who was born in Sevilla. She’s best known for her leading role as Alejandra in the film El Embarcadero (The Pier on Netflix), in which she plays the wife of Money Heist professor Álvaro Morte, and her role as Red Cross nurse Pilar in Morocco: Loves in Time of War. Véronica has 128’000 followers on Instagram.
Asier Etxeandia plays Romeo, a pimp and the owner of Club Las Novias, one of Tenerife’s best-known brothels. He’s also the head of a network that traffics women for sexual exploitation. Which each prostitute who works in his club, Romeo earns 250’000 euros in two years. Wry, smart and entirely lacking a moral compass, he believes his business is justified and sees himself as a great artist. He relies on the unconditional aid of his henchmen, Moisés and Christian, whom he considers part of his family.
“Above all, a pimp is a psychologist,” says Romeo in episode 3. “Hookers come to us feeling totally shattered, completely decimated. Nobody in this world has lower self-esteem. And what do we do? We listen to them. We give them love. And why do we do that? All these girls are on their own. They have no one else in the world. If they think that you’re the only one who cares even a little bit about them, they’ll give you the world.”
Asier Etxeandia is a 45-year old actor and singer from Bilbao, Spain. He’s best known for his role as fashion designer Raúl de la Riva in Velvet, a successful Spanish TV series in which he played alongside Miguel Ángel Silvestre (see below) and Paula Echevarría. Asier also starred in Pedro Almodóvar’s critically acclaimed drama Dolor y Gloria, in which he played Antonio Bandera’s lover. He lives in Madrid with his husband José Luis Huertas and is crazy about Gora, his white maltese dog, whom he calls “my daughter”. Asier has 453’000 followers on Instagram.
IS HE TOKYO’S NEW LOVER IN MONEY HEIST 5?
Miguel Ángel Silvestre plays Moisés, Romeo’s right hand, managing Club Las Novias while also acting as a middleman in the recruitment of girls from abroad, whom he tells that they will work as a waitress in Tenerife. He’s a criminal who isn’t moved by money, but rather by absolute loyalty to Romeo. Second thoughts about his chosen life constantly torment him, but he tries to push them aside and just follow orders.
Miguel Ángel Silvestre is a 38-year old Spanish actor who’s considered a sex symbol in his home country. Even though he’s best known for his performance of Alberto Márquez in Velvet, his acting portfolio is quite impressive. He starred in Narcos (season 3), 8Sense, Alacrán enamorado and El corredor de la muerte and many other movies. His biggest international success is yet to come. He has joined the cast of La casa de papel (Money Heist), but his role in season 5 hasn’t been revealed yet. It is only known that he might have an affair with Tokyo due to a video that shows both of them dancing together. Miguel has 3.7 million followers on Instagram.
Lali Espósito plays Wendy, an impetuous, strong-willed and defiant woman. When she arrives at Club Las Novias, she knows that she’ll be entering the world of prostitution, but not that she is voluntarily walking into her own kidnapping. In her attempt to escape poverty, she dreams of being able to settle down with her partner and having an economically secure life. She is a strong woman who only has time for action, a fearless spirit who tries to infect others with her courage. A force of nature, she trusts no one.
Lali Espósito is a 29-year old Argentine singer and actress. She began her career at the age of 12 when she joined the cast of a children’s telenovela. From 2007 to 2012, she had a huge international success with the teen pop band Teen Angels. In the following years, she release several solo studio albums and won four MTV Europe Music Awards and six MTV Millennial Awards. Lali has 8.2 million followers on Instagram.
Yany Prado plays Gina, a naïve and sweet Cuban. She believes in the goodness of people above all else. In Cuba, she is recruited by Moisés and tricked into believing that she will be working as a waitress. She desperately tries to escape, but a mountain of debt and threats, not to mention Romeo keeping her passport from her, make getting her life back a nearly unattainable dream. She never loses hope that things can get better and is the pillar that unites the girls.
Yany Prado is a 31-year old Cuban actress who attended the Televisa acting school in Mexico City. She had minor roles in five Mexican telenovelas. Yany has 73’000 followers on Instagram.
Enric Auquer plays Christian, impulsive and aggressive, a ticking time bomb. He is Moisés’ little brother, though he lacks any of his older sibling’s moral misgivings, not to mention any independent thoughts or ambitions. In a matter of milliseconds, he can go from calm to a murderous rage. He always needs to measure up to his brother and to feel wanted and valued. He’s been addicted to everything at one point or another, and the only person he seems to care about is his mother.
CORAL’S AND ROMEO’S SECRETS (SPOILERS)
This last part of 27 Facts About Sky Rojo contains a few spoilers. If you haven’t watched the series yet, stop reading the article.
Sky Rojo opens with a scene in which Romeo attends a funeral with his two daughters. It’s his wife’s funeral who died of cancer.
Coral, who holds a Bachelor of Science in biology, is a fugitive. She killed her mother-in-law, who ate a poisened chickpea soup that Coral had prepared for her husband.
While working at the Club Las Novias, Coral had a relationship with Moisés.
Romeo, who is in love with Coral, doesn’t know about this relationship.
REVIEW SKY ROJO
Netflix announced Sky Rojo as a new action-packed series from the creators of Money Heist. Even though the producers applied a few golden rules of Money Heist – good vs. evil, action, trash pop culture, guns and female power – the plot is not only predictable, but also light years away from the original script of Money Heist. Even though the speed of the fast-paced episodes is great, the MTV-inspired style is cool and the sarcasm of many dialogues is hilarious, e. g. when Coral swallows veterinary prescription drugs, the constant sex dialogues opposed to the moralizer’s warning (“if men didn’t pay for sex, no woman would have to work as a prostitute”) are irritating, superficial and utopian.
VERTIGO’S rating: 5 points out of 10.
SKY ROJO SEASON 2: Q & A WITH VÉRONICA AND LALI
VIDEO INTERVIEW WITH LALI AND MIGUEL ÁNGEL
SKY ROJO BEHIND THE SCENES
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Foto: Courtesy of Tamara Arranz for Vancouver Media
