It has been years since the bank robbers from ‘La casa de papel’ walked out of the Royal Mint in Madrid with a billion euros in their pockets. Yet the Salvador Dalí masks, red jumpsuits and the song ‘Bella ciao’ still reverberate around the world.
In the shadow of the greatest heist of all time, Netflix unfolds the prequel Berlin named after the charismatic sociopath who captivated every viewer with his quirky grin and cynicism.
It’s an iconic scene from the second season La casa de papel : Berlin who sacrifices himself so that his gang can escape a hail of police bullets. In the first season, the jewel thief is portrayed as an inveterate macho with a serious lack of empathy. He views his colleagues as inferior and even forces a hostage into a relationship with him. Very screwed up, but the intelligent reflections of the professional criminal made a lot of waves among the millions of viewers. Berlin was embraced worldwide and even declared himself the most popular character between 2017 and 2021 La casa de papel to call. Netflix is responding to the fervent hype surrounding the maniac. How did Berlin become the man who led the crazy heist?
In the prequel, viewers are treated to Berlin’s life story for eight episodes in the prelude to the heist of all robberies. Berlin, also played in the prequel by the Spanish Pedro Alonso, unexpectedly shows his soft side on the streets of Paris. Way ahead of the fuss La casa de papel . He comes up with the following plan: steal $44 million worth of jewelry in one afternoon. Here too he is surrounded by thieves La casa de papel – make their entrance in a similar manner. Berlin’s love for armed robberies must make room for Camille, a beautiful Frenchwoman. The charmer is madly in love, but to make matters worse, Camille is married to a man who is extremely important to the magnificent plan.
Prequels to hit series
Prequels to hit series are hip, says media expert Kirsten Jan van Nieuwenhuijzen. “One of the best prequels ever made and watched is The Godfather part 2 . It’s about the life of mafia boss Don Vito Corleone. Also Better call Saul , the prequel to Breaking bad , was very well received by many fans.” Van Nieuwenhuijzen mentions The ballad or s ongbirds and s nakes one of the most recent successful prequels, this film tells the story leading up to the Hunger games series. We recently saw the series from our own soil Ferry to be released on Netflix, a prequel to Undercover . According to Netflix data, this series was one of the most watched titles of the past two months.
The fact that the producer opts for a prequel about Berlin is a logical choice, according to the media expert. “The nice thing about Berlin is that it has different layers. A psychopath, but also very charming. He has many elements for his own story. He is scary, the brother of The Professor and also terminal.” The question arises why there is no prequel about The Professor? After all, his mastermind carries the full story La casa the papule. “The Professor is actually too sympathetic. Prequels are more interesting if they are about a main character who is not one-dimensional.”
Retain viewers
However, making a prequel to a successful series or film also involves a risk, according to media expert Jarno Stolk. “Spin-offs and prequels often have lower viewing figures than the original. That is of course a shame, but it is still interesting for a channel or streaming service. They have some guarantee that they can retain some of the viewers.”
Van Nieuwenhuijzen also believes that prequels are more often a flop than a top. “There have been countless prequels that have received a lot of criticism. People sometimes have the feeling that a studio only wants to milk the franchise instead of really adding something to the original story.” He emphasizes that this is indeed one of the main reasons for producers to launch a prequel. “They continue to build on the success of a brand/franchise and this guarantees you a certain audience. The risk is smaller than launching a whole new title. But the downside is that fans can be disappointed because the story is milked.”
Stolk mentions The lord of the rings : the rings or power at Amazon Prime as an example, a prequel to Lord of the r ings . “Only 37% watched the prequel in its entirety, but strategically it was still a good move by Amazon because these viewers were not watching a competitor at the time.”
That La casa the papule has a large fan base is set in stone. The series conquered the Dutch carnival cities in 2019 when the red overalls and Dalí masks flew over the counters. Also the number Bella c ia O from the series is still a common remix song for DJs all over the world. Will the charming Berlin also wrap us around his criminal fingers with the prequel?
Berlin can be seen on Netflix