In 2016, regular people in Mexico and the US were enthralled by the bizarre story of El Chapo aka Joaquín Guzmán Loera, the notorious Mexican drug lord who escaped from jail in 2015 – and became the focus of the largest manhunt since Osama Bin Laden. El Chapo then appeared in the media via a clandestine interview by actors Sean Penn and Kate del Castillo. Penn was quick to discuss how it all came about but Castillo’s story didn’t have the same traction, until now.
Netflix has announced an October 20th release date for their exclusive three-part series on the El Chapo story, entitled The Day I Met El Chapo: The Kate del Castillo Story. Directed by Carlos Armelia the series will examine Castillo’s part in the meeting between her, Penn and El Chapo. “As an actress I’ve been given the opportunity to portray fascinating fictional characters, roles I am very proud of. Now I get the chance to tell my story, my reality, my truth,” says Castillo, who is also an executive producer on the story.
Del Castillo’s story is easily one of the craziest true crime stories to take place via social media with the popular La Reina del Sur actress propositioning the drug lord via Twitter to meet her. She received a response two years after her initial request from Loera’s lawyer asking her about the possibility of making a biopic about him. Castillo was later investigated for possibly receiving illicit funds from the drug czar after the interview, and received a “detain and interrogate” from Mexican authorities. Castillo remains a popular actress of both television and film, both in the US and Mexico with credits that include appearances on the CW’s Jane the Virgin and films like The Book of Life and The 33.