Netflix’s adaptation of Pedro Páramo, one of the most iconic works of Mexican literature, will hit the streaming service on November 6, 2024. Among the many questions asked about the source material on which the movie is based, one of the most commonly asked is who exactly is Pedro Páramo? Is he a real person?
Pedro Páramo is a novel by Mexican writer Juan Rulfo, first published in 1955. It follows Juan Preciado, who promises his mother on her deathbed that he will go meet his father for the first time in the fictional town of Comala. Once he gets there Preciado comes across what can only be described as a ghost town, populated by specters that share details about life in Comala and Preciado’s father, Pedro Páramo.
But Páramo, the titular character in the novel, is not a real person and isn’t based on someone Rulfo met. Instead, the novel, which is set in the early 20th century during the Mexican Revolution, presents the character as both the protagonist and the antagonist of the tale. Comala, the town Preciado arrives in, is proof of both Páramo’s virtues and flaws.
Instead, Páramo is a deeply flawed man who only really cares about one person, his childhood love Susana San Juan, and after her death, loses his will to do anything – to the point that he lets the town “die.” Despite his love for Susana, however, Páramo is also shown to assault many women, father multiple children, and is very much a controversial and violent figure who is never showcased as a typical hero – despite the book being named after him.
Netflix’s adaptation, directed by renowned cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto (The Irishman) in his directorial debut and starring The Lincoln Lawyer’s Manuel García Rulfo in the titular role is set to bring the story of Pedro Páramo to a global audience. But when it does, it’s important to remember who Pedro Páramo is and the fact that he is anything but a hero.