ArkaEvren
Narcos

TV SERIES · 2015–2017 · USA

Narcos

Created by
Chris Brancato, Doug Miro, Carlo Bernard
Network
Netflix
Seasons
3
Episodes
30
Studio
Gaumont International Television

55 archived facts 7 topics 1 source Last reviewed Nov 2026

A gritty chronicle of the war against Colombia's infamously violent and powerful drug cartels.

  • Narcos — production image

55 Interesting Facts About Narcos

Interesting Facts (18)

  1. #001

    The final frequency that led to Pablo Escobar's downfall on December 2, 1993, was located by the son of Colonel Hugo Martinez, the commander of the Search Bloc. According to Steve Murphy, that frequency was obtained by Javier Peña through an informant.

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  2. #002

    In Spanish, the term "narco" is an abbreviation of the word "narcotraficante", which means drug trafficker.

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  3. #003

    Wagner Moura sees Narcos (2015) as his official entrance in the international film industry, because Elysium (2013) seemed more like an experience, since his character didn't have a big relevance.

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  4. #004

    During his peak, Pablo made $420 million dollars every week amounting to about $21.8 billion dollars a year making him one of the richest men in the world. It is said that he spent approximately $3000 in buying rubber bands for his money each month. Rats nibbled at 10 percent of his money amounting to a loss of $2 billion each year.

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  5. #005

    Wagner Moura plays the role of Pablo Escobar, a Colombian drug-lord. In one of his best known roles in Elite Squad (2007) he plays a BOPE (Brazilian Special Police) Captain trying to take down drug dealers and criminals in Rio de Janeiro.

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  6. #006

    Christian Tappan, who plays Kiko Moncada on this show, plays Pablo Escobar's cousin Gonzalo Gaviria on Pablo Escobar: El Patrón del Mal (2012).

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  7. #007

    Wagner Moura and André Mattos worked together with José Padilha in Elite Squad 2: The Enemy Within (2010).

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  8. #008

    Maurice Compte played a hit man for a Mexican cartel in the series Breaking Bad (2008). In Narcos, he's the colonel trying to take down Pablo Escobar and the Medellin cartel.

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  9. #009

    The character of Valeria Velez is based on Virginia Vallejo. Unlike her TV counterpart Virginia Vallejo is still alive today living in the USA under asylum. She was taken out of Colombia after agreeing to testify against the Cali cartel in 2006 leading to the prosecution of the Orejuela brothers who are currently serving a 30 year sentence in the US.

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  10. #010

    Alberto Ammann who played Pacho Herrera is the only actor to appear in all six seasons ( 3 Narcos) and ( 3 Narcos-Mexico )

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  11. #011

    Carrillo is based on Hugo Martínez Poveda who used to wink on declaring any criminal killed in an encounter.

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  12. #012

    Aldemar Correa, who plays the character of Ivan Torres, head of the militia group M-19, also acts as Fabio Ochoa in Pablo Escobar: El Patrón del Mal (2012), another production about Pablo Escobar's life.

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  13. #013

    The character Jorge Salcedo is portrayed by the Swedish actor Matias Varela, who has previously performed another character named Jorge in the movie Easy Money (2010).

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  14. #014

    Javier Peña, portrayed by Pedro Pascal, played a key role in the real-life takedown of Pablo Escobar and the Medellín Cartel, events depicted in the first and second seasons of Narcos. He was not involved in bringing down the Rodríguez brothers and their Cali Cartel, which is portrayed in the third season. However, the series presents Javier Peña as a main character across all three seasons as it topples both the Medellín and Cali cartels.

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  15. #015

    The two real-life DEA agents, Javier Peña and Steve Murphy, had a cameo in the bar scene watching the Rockets-Knicks game (S02E10 44:15).

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  16. #016

    Pedro Pascal turned down the lawyer role in Daredevil (2015) in favor of this series.

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  17. #017

    Wagner Moura gained 40 lbs for the role of Pablo Escobar.

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  18. #018

    Carrillo is based on Hugo Martínez Poveda, who winked while announcing that any criminal had been killed in an encounter.

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Production Story (11)

  1. #019

    Adriana Barraza was previously cast to portray Hermilda Escobar, Pablo's mother, in four episodes, including the pilot. She was later replaced by Paulina García for unknown reasons.

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  2. #020

    The Ms. Colombia in the intro is Mexican model Oralia Cortes.

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  3. #021

    The dialogue was originally planned to be entirely in English, but the producers decided shortly before filming to switch to Spanish. This left the Brazilian lead actor Wagner Moura at a loss, as he didn't speak the language. He wound up moving to Colombia for the few months before production and took a crash course at the local university.

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  4. #022

    The second season became available in the U.S. on September 2, 2016. All 10 episodes were available to stream at once on Netflix.

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  5. #023

    Pedro Pascal turned down the role of a lawyer in Daredevil (2015) in favor of this series.

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  6. #024

    This is technically Mauricio Mejía's 2nd time portraying paramilitary leader Carlos Castaño in a TV series. The 1st time he played the role was in the Colombian TV series El Cartel de los Sapos (2008), with his role as Adolfo Aguilar, a character based on the real life Carlos Castaño.

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  7. #025

    Adriana Barraza was previously tapped to portray Hermilda Escobar, Pablo's mother, in four episodes - including the pilot. She was later replaced by Paulina García for unknown reasons.

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  8. #026

    The dialogue was planned to be entirely in English, but the producers decided to switch to Spanish shortly before filming. This put the Brazilian lead actor Wagner Moura, who did not speak Spanish, in a difficult position. The actor spent the several months before production moving to Colombia and attending an intensive language course at a local university.

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  9. #027

    The 'Uzi' used by the drug lords in Narcos is actually an Ekol ASI; it is a blank-firing clone used in many films in place of the real Uzi.

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  10. #028

    The Para Ordnance Model 85 weapons seen frequently in the second season are actually automatic paintball rifles (labeled as 'dye markers'). Manufactured in the 1980s, these weapons were designed as training tools for military and law enforcement.

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  11. #029

    Agent Javier Peña, played by Pedro Pascal, played an important role in real life in the takedown of Pablo Escobar and the Medellin cartel. These events are covered in the first and second seasons of Narcos. Peña was not involved in the takedown of the Rodriguez brothers and the Cali cartel, which is the subject of the third season. However, the series presents Javier Peña as a main character in all three seasons and portrays him as the man who brought down both the Medellin and Cali cartels.

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Behind the Scenes (4)

  1. #030

    The 'Uzi' seen being fired by various narcos during the series is actually an Ekol ASI, a blank-firing Uzi 'clone' used in place of the real Uzi in many films.

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  2. #031

    Wagner Moura is Brazilian and had to learn Spanish to take on the role. His mother tongue is Portuguese. Incidentally, the opening theme is also sung in Spanish by a Brazilian musician, Rodrigo Amarante.

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  3. #032

    This includes Adria Arjona's first nude scene.

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  4. #033

    The Para Ordnance Model 85 weapons seen frequently in the second season are actually automatic paintball rifles (labeled as 'dye markers'). Manufactured in the 1980s, these weapons were designed as training tools for the military and law enforcement.

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Characters & Cast (11)

  1. #034

    Joe Toft is considered the real-life counterpart to the portrayal of DEA agent Javier Peña in Season 3 of the show. Toft served as the Special Agent in Charge and DEA Country Attaché in Colombia, acting as the primary superior to both Javier Peña and Steve Murphy during the hunt for Pablo Escobar.

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  2. #035

    Carrillo is based on Hugo Martínez Poveda, who used to wink when declaring any criminal killed in an encounter.

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  3. #036

    Pedro Pascal felt uncomfortable in 1980s fashions ("I looked like a kid."), so he decided to make Peña's wardrobe a character trait: "Let's just say Javier Peña is like Don Draper, in that the 70s is where he really found himself... and so he's stuck there. He's not throwing those pants out, he's not changing his hair, he's not changing his shoes. It's his time, and he's gonna look like that until the day he dies."

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  4. #037

    Maurice Compte played a hit man for a Mexican cartel in the series Breaking Bad (2008). In Narcos, he is the colonel trying to take down Pablo Escobar and the Medellín cartel.

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  5. #038

    Mauricio Mejía, who plays the character of Carlos Castaño, has portrayed Pablo Escobar on three non-related TV/Film productions, in El Patron del mal, La viuda negra and American Made.

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  6. #039

    Many actors from "Escobar: El Patron del Mal (EPM) also star in these Miniseries. The most relevant ones: a) Christian Tappán landed the role of Gonzalo Gaviria in EPM and plays one of the Moncada brothers in Narcos. b) Helena Mallarino plays Ana de Cano in EPM and plays the mother of reporter Turbay in Narcos. c) Aldemar Correa plays the youngest of the Ochoa brothers in EPM and plays the M-19 lead in Narcos. d) Juan Carlos Arango plays El Mariachi en EPM, and plays General Ariza in Narcos.

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  7. #040

    Agent Javier Pena, portrayed here by Pedro Pascal, was significantly involved in bringing down Pablo Escobar and the Medellin cartel in real life. These events are depicted in seasons one and two of Narcos. He was not involved in bringing down the Rodriguez brothers and their Cali cartel, which is depicted in season three of Narcos. However, the Narcos series shows Javier Pena in all three seasons as main character, bringing down the Medellin and Cali cartels.

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  8. #041

    Both Pedro Pascal and Diego Luna (who stars in Narcos: Mexico (2018-), a spin-off of this series) are a part of the Star Wars franchise. Pascal stars as the titular Mandalorian in The Mandalorian (2019-), and Luna played Cassian Andor in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016).

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  9. #042
    Contains a major spoiler — show

    The character of Valeria Velez is based on Virginia Vallejo. Unlike her TV counterpart, Virginia Vallejo is still alive today, living in the USA under asylum. She was taken out of Colombia after agreeing to testify against the Cali cartel in 2006, leading to the prosecution of the Orejuela brothers, who are currently serving a 30-year sentence in the US.

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  10. #043

    Pedro Pascal turned down a lawyer role in Daredevil (2015) in order to take this series.

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  11. #044

    Adriana Barraza was initially cast to play Pablo's mother, Hermilda Escobar, in four episodes (including the pilot). However, for unknown reasons, she was replaced by Paulina García.

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Easter Eggs & References (5)

  1. #045

    Several times throughout the second season, several sicarios are seen armed with the Para Ordnance Model 85. This is, in fact, an automatic paintball marker (labelled a 'dye marker') manufactured in the 1980s and intended as a training tool for military and law enforcement agencies.

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  2. #046

    During the intro, the U.S. president on the TV screen changes chronologically with the timeline of the story.

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  3. #047

    When Pablo Escobar first met Fernando Duque in his house, he said, "I'm not rich, I'm a poor man with money"; this is a famous quote by the Colombian Nobel Prize-winning writer Gabriel García Márquez.

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  4. #048
    Contains a major spoiler — show

    At the end of SE02 E7, after the car bomb explosion, the narrator says the bomb is "C-4". But at the beginning of the next episode (SE02 E8), the same narrator says it is 220 pounds of "TNT".

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  5. #049
    Contains a major spoiler — show

    The real-life Javier Peña and Steve Murphy, the two DEA agents, had a cameo. They were in the bar scene watching the Rockets vs. Knicks game (S02E10, 44:15).

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Deeper Meaning (3)

  1. #050

    When Pablo Escobar met Fernando Duque at his home for the first time, he said, 'I am not rich, I am a poor man who owns money.' This is a famous line by the Colombian Nobel Prize-winning author Gabriel Garcia Marquez.

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  2. #051

    In the show's opening credits, the US president shown on the television screen changes in keeping with the chronology of the story.

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  3. #052

    The final frequency that led to Pablo Escobar's downfall on December 2, 1993 was detected by the son of Colonel Hugo Martinez, commander of the Search Bloc. According to Steve Murphy, this frequency had been obtained by Javier Peña from an informant.

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Career & Awards (3)

  1. #053

    Alberto Ammann, who played Pacho Herrera, is the only actor to appear in all six seasons: three of Narcos and three of Narcos: Mexico.

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  2. #054

    Both Pedro Pascal and Diego Luna, who stars in Narcos: Mexico (2018–), a spin-off of this series, are part of the Star Wars franchise. Pascal stars as the titular Mandalorian in The Mandalorian (2019–), and Luna played Cassian Andor in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016).

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  3. #055

    Narcos (2015)'s cinematographer Lula Carvalho had previously worked with José Padilha in Elite Squad (2007), Elite Squad 2: The Enemy Within (2010), and RoboCop (2014).

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Sources & editorial notes

Reference databases

  • Wikipedia English Wikipedia article
  • IMDb IMDb title page (trivia)

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