There have been many films or documentaries on the life and sporting exploits of the Argentinian player but this new ten-part biographical series, broadcast vFriday October 29 on Amazon Prime, was authorized by Diego Maradona.
Filming, which began in early 2019, took place in Argentina, Uruguay, Naples, Barcelona and Mexico. The series tells the story of Pelusa, the “Pibe de oro” born in Villa Fiorito, his love for football, his strong character and his life of excess. All this in a very intense historical Argentinian context, with the military dictatorship, the Falklands War or the fight of the Mothers of the Place de May to find their missing children.
To bring this blockbuster to a successful conclusion, Maradona himself testified, along with his siblings and many very close friends and ex-representatives at different times in his life. The idea for the production was to release the series in 2020, on Maradona’s 60th birthday, October 30. But due to the Covid-19 pandemic, post-production and assembly work has been delayed. Then the player died a month later. Finally, it was decided to launch this mega production for the 61 years of Maradona. The final episode will air the day after the first anniversary of his death.
In Argentina, the first episode was broadcast on television Thursday evening at 10 o’clock in the evening, in tribute to number 10. The channel broke audience records with its highest level in seven years. A screening was also organized in the Argentino Juniors stadium where Diego began with a concert and the presence of supporters in the stands.
Some have noted historical errors, such as the death of Peron which took place in 1974 and not in 69 as shown in the series. But it is certainly a simplification in the narration for a series with an international aim which wanted to mention certain highlights without going into detail. There are also disgruntled friends like Maradona’s ex-manager Guillermo Coppola, whom the show passes off as an unscrupulous representative. According to him, the reality is totally different from what is told. Same speech from the ex-wife of Diego Maradona and his two first daughters, who never gave their version of the facts for the development of the script, which made them declare that according to them, it was about ‘a fiction and not a biographical series.
The series came out at a very tense time against the backdrop of legal proceedings over the exploitation of the name which is also the Maradona brand. The heirs claim they are the sole owners of the name, but his lawyer says Diego ceded his rights to him before his death. The series was precisely authorized by Maradona when he was advised by this lawyer and an entourage very criticized by the family for having let him die. As for his ex-wife, Claudia Villafañe, she filed a complaint against Amazon for using her name without her consent. A series that therefore generates enthusiasm and euphoria but also controversy and scandal, like the Argentine player.