After watching Wagner Moura play the legendary Pablo Escobar in Netflix’s hit show Narcos, we all thought his career had peaked. But it seems the man, who once ruled the cocaine empire on-screen is back in the drug trade—but this time, he’s barely hanging on. In Apple TV+’s Dope Thief, Moura claimed to have ditched the kingpin persona for something far more raw.
Playing the role of Manny, a man drowning in crime but desperate to break free, unlike his previous character Pablo Escobar, who thrived in chaos, Wagner Moura mentioned the challenges of playing a character who’s always a second away from falling apart. Therefore, calling Dope Thief his most vulnerable performance yet, Moura promised a wild ride with his Apple TV+ show.
Wagner Moura set his Narcos character apart from Dope Thief
If you still see Wagner Moura and instantly hear “Plata o Plomo,” you’re not alone. His impeccable performance as Pablo Escobar in Netflix’s Narcos was so convincing that fans still seem to associate him with the ruthless drug lord. But if you ask the actor, he’d say Dope Thief is by far his most rawest and challenging role yet.
In the Apple TV show Dope Thief—diverting completely from his previous role as the power-hungry kingpin—Wagner Moura embraced the role of Manny, a man who has no business being in the drug trade. Unlike Escobar, who built an empire and reveled in the chaos, Manny wants out.
Now, Wagner Moura told CBR that this particular dilemma and this on-the-verge personality of his character is what made things so raw and emotionally challenging for him in Dope Thief. Manny is no mastermind, no cartel boss, not even a skilled criminal, in fact, Moura himself said, “he’s not even good at it!”—which, let’s be honest, is refreshing.
Both shows have a similar theme, which is, of course, the drug trade. The characters are involved in the drug trade, but the characters are so different. One thing that I loved about Manny — the thing that I loved most about him — is that he doesn’t want to be there.
He doesn’t want to be in that situation, whereas Pablo Escobar really wanted to be there. Manny doesn’t. He’s not even good at it. [Laughs.] He spends the entire series really trying to get rid of that cycle of violence that he was engulfed with.
Explaining what makes Dope Thief so different from his previous show, Wagner Moura implied that the Apple TV show is a lot like anti-Narcos. Instead of following a character who embraces the life of crime, we get someone actively trying to escape it. So, for Moura, it felt like a breath of fresh air.
Dope Thief is unlike anything Wagner Moura has ever done
After setting the two shows apart from each other—despite their similarities—Wagner Moura mentioned that Dope Thief is unlike anything he has ever done. Stating how he not only played a different kind of criminal but also a completely different kind of person, Moura mentioned that it’s Manny’s heart and hesitation, unlike Escobar’s ambition that made the role so satisfying for him.
He has remorse; we talk about remorse. He’s Catholic. There’s a lot of of guilt. So it’s the most vulnerable character that I have ever played. He’s so emotional in every scene that this character is in. Everything that I had with Brian was so emotional.
He’s always on the verge of breaking up. That’s a very risky thing to do, I think, as an actor, but I felt that having Brian with me there, I could do basically whatever I wanted. I just had to look into his eyes and go, and that’s what we did.
Stating how his character isn’t just running from danger, but he’s running from his inner demons—he’s haunted by guilt and weighed down by remorse—Wagner Moura mentioned how emotional it was for him to portray the character. So, in the end, unlike Narcos, the Apple TV show won’t feature a man’s rise to power, instead audiences will watch a man desperately trying to reclaim his soul.
For fans of Narcos, this shift might be shocking. But if you’re ready to see Wagner Moura in a raw, emotional, and deeply human role, Dope Thief is about to steal your attention—no pun intended.
Dope Thief will premiere on Apple TV+ on March 14, 2025.
Narcos is currently available to watch on Netflix.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
