Money Heist Phenomenon: How the Spanish Series Made It Big Globally

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Money Heist

If you’re a lot into the web series culture, you’ve definitely come across Money Heist. The Spanish drama La Casa De Papel has taken the internet by storm and the places in people’s hearts globally.

If you’ve already seen season 4 of Money Heist, you’re in for a ride to know some of the most interesting facts revealed in Money Heist Phenomenon. It has glimpses of the BTS shot and what they had to put together to make the web series so popular. If you’ve still not watched season 4, beware of the spoilers ahead!

Facts about Money Heist

You will be surprised to know that one of the most loved web series was on the verge of cancellation as it wasn’t doing pretty well in the native country. It was Netflix that came in and gave them the push they needed and their trust made it the second-most popular show on the streaming channel.

Just the way the robbers are on the edge all the time as we see in the series, the journey of their real lives was much similar. They were on the verge of going off air after season 2 backfired but everything changed because of Netflix.

Money Heist Phenomenon is one-hour BTS that shows how they went from making low budget shots to shooting at exotic islands with the help of Netflix. How they’re popularity changed their lives and how they ignited minds and lives of people. Find out all the facts shared in the one hour long video if you’re done with season 4 already and cherish the moments with the cast and crew.

Money Heist doomed before Netflix bought it

The first season of La Casa De Papel only premiered in the Spanish TV channel Antena 3. A lot of people watched the show and it showed promising results within the country. The very first episode got 4.5 million views which is a lot from the native audience. But as the series proceeded the views started to drop. The cast and crew had already accepted defeat and it was a flop show until Netflix acquired it.

Netflix titled the show as Money Heist and made it available with English dubbing and subtitles for people in the US. However, there were no fancy promotions for the show and they got little advertisement. It was more like one of the series in the catalog so there was still a doubt about how people would accept it. However, slowly people started watching and liking the web series. The unpredictable drama was one the best gambles that Netflix took up and it actually paid off for them.

They didn’t go out of Madrid for season 1

If you’ve seen the third and fourth season of Money Heist, you’d have gone through beautiful beaches and stunning tourist’s spots. However, do you know that they didn’t have the budget to shoot internationally during the first season?

Currently, Money Heist has a huge international fan base, but during the first season, they never left Spain. All the foreign locations that you saw on the series were recreated by set workers and with GCI. After it went popular due to Netflix, they could take it to a larger level.

Most viewed in six countries

According to Money Heist Phenomenon, the series has been the most seen web series in France, Argentina, Italy, Portugal, and Brazil. It also has a huge fanbase in the Middle East, North Africa, and Turkey.

Celebrity fans

As the web series gained popularity, it attracted a lot of celebrities who owned red jumpsuits and Salvador Dali masks. The two big names who have obsessed over the show is Stephen King and Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior. The Brazilian footballer was so much into the show that he agreed to do a cameo in the web series.

Writers on the go

You might completely lose your mind with this point. If you think that Money Heist is written by a single writer who has it all planned right from season 1, then you’re wrong. The writers of the web series kept writing the plots right before some of the shots had to be taken. None of the scripts have been written in advance and the writers kept writing along with the series.

The purpose behind working in this manner just made sure that the writers knew the call to action that had to be taken. They went according to what the script needed and the direction was adapted accordingly. This also means, that a certain shot could change the next plot and bring in new ideas to create.

If you remember, there was a scene in season 3 that shows a flashback to a time when The Professor teaches his students to do a surgery. He brings a dead pig to practice and the character Marseille who plays a fearless hitman refuses to carry on the surgery. He says that might not value human life, but when it comes to animals, he can be an activist.

The purpose behind this scene was to bring in levity to make the serious scene a little casual. This is one of the scenes where the writers improvised on their creativity but they followed the mantra later on. Later, Marseille goes onto tell The Professor about his pet dog and how much he meant to him.

The most difficult scenes to shoot

Two of the most complicated scenes to shoot in the documentary was the comeback for another heist in season 3. The scene where they were flying right on top of the city of Madrid only to let go of millions of euros to create chaos in the streets. The other scene was to steal gold underwater from the Bank of Spain.

To capture glimpses of the submerged vault, the team had to create a set inside a filming tank in the UK. It was a swimming pool used for filming and it gave a realistic effect. The problem was dealing with the made-to-show gold bricks that were actually made of foam. The gold bricks started floating in the water and were later drilled together to stay intact. Again, they started to collapse due to the pressure of the water. To get the scene right, the designers had to correct each and every shot. It took a lot of time and effort, but the results were worth every bit.

The money throwing scene was a complete nightmare for the team and it felt like everything was falling apart. It was extremely difficult to launch euros into the streets the way the director wanted. To top that up, the weather wasn’t favorable at all. At first, it was gloomy and then it started raining. The fake notes that were already cluttered across the streets started to lose the monetary texture but they somehow managed to use them. However, after the rain stopped, it looked as sunny as a summer day. Thus, it wasn’t matching the shots that were taken before the rain. Somehow, they managed the shoot and everything ended the way they wanted.

The Professor is actually a nerd

Money Heist has given us several controversial characters who you would love and hate equally. If you’ve been trying to understand more about The Professor, let’s reveal that he is a nerd.

The series has been pretty unpredictable all through, but now the makers are spilling the beans to help you know the characters better. The fearless Professor who seems to be following his principles perfectly is actually a loser. The audience is supposed to look at him like he is great at academics but he has a hard time hitting on women. He comes with unexpected twists and turns, tries to be as cool as possible, and is so dedicated that everyone in the team relies on his unbelievable plans.

Season 3 and 4 were as realistic as possible

From breaking in a vault that is filled with water to showering money, from exotic sunsets of Thailand to taking in hostages, season 3 and 4 have been the most realistic. The BTS showed that they actually built a complete set to make it look like the Bank of Spain. They had to hire marine engineers to plan out the design of the antechamber and hire metalworkers to know how they can melt gold and transport it from the bank. They used original brass instead of gold and actually had they melted down into granules.

The significance of Bella Ciao

Bella Ciao was a protest song way before the makers of Money Heist picked it up. You would be surprised to know that one of the most haunting moments for the makers was not to outsmart the police to survive gunfire, but finding the perfect song.

In season 1, when the group of robbers found the dirt inside the Mint of Spain, they sang the Italian song Bella Ciao. The dirt symbolizes the ray of hope to escape the robbery with the money. Later, they repeat Bella Ciao in a scene where The Professors sings the song with his brother Berlin, which is the night before of the heist.

Bella Ciao has been a song to signify victory for protesters who dared to rebel with a cause. Long before it inspired the fictional robbers in Money Heist, it inspired real protestors. During the Second World War, the song was used to rally antifascist resistance in Italy.

After the popularity of the series, many protestors were seen to sing the song. They made their own version with the same tune, added their own lyrics, but used it for a similar purpose. There have been protests in Lebanon, France, Chile and Iraq where people have used this song a sign of protest and resistance.

Money Heist inspired real heists

One of the most controversial aspects of Money Heist happened when real people dressed up in red jumpsuits with Dali masks tried to carry out a real robbery. These were however controlled by the authorities; let’s admit, no one can think like The Professor when it comes to heists!

Saying goodbye to Alba Flores

Alba Flores who plays Nairobi in Money Heist is killed by an assassin named Gandia in season 4. Just like the rest of the series, even this wasn’t planned. Nairobi was one of the most loved characters because even with her messed up life, she showed kindness, compassion, and motivation. She was one of the most loved robbers and her passing made many viewers upset.

Money Heist Phenomenon honors Alba Flores and shows glimpses of her last day at shoot. She is seen expressing how much the team matters to her and how her lives changed because of it. Finally, she seems to leave the set and says that she is not going to get the much-needed rest.

Rise to stardom

Along with BTS, there were small bytes shared by the characters where they spoke about how their lives changed. The popularity of the show made some city shots difficult to shoot, because it was filled with people all around. These were the same people who struggled to get through intially and had few people rooting for them.

Currently, the characters have gained nationwide craze and there are people sending them love from all over. Their Instagram handles have more than millions of followers and they cannot believe how much their lives have changed.

Money Heist Season 5 expectations

Money Heist season 5 is supposed to release in April 2021, but due to the current pandemic situation, there can be changes. Since Spain is one of the countries most effected, it might take more time to get back on track. Until then we can only imagine what is going to happen next. Is Alicia going to shoot The Professor? Are we going to see flashback scenes of Nairobi? Is anyone else going to die? Are they going to escape the Bank of Spain with all the gold? Well, we can only anticipate the season to come out and then we’d have all the answers!

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