Hulu is now streaming its first Spanish-language-produced original series, “La Máquina,” a story about boxing, friendship, the sociopolitical forces outside of the ring and saying “goodbye.”
A boxing series that was a decade in-the-making
Eyewitness News moderated a conversation with the stars and executive producers of the show, Diego Luna and Gael García Bernal for Disney employees, where the duo discussed the inspiration, significance and mission of the series.
“One of the main things that grabbed us was, ‘How can we tell a story about saying goodbye to success?’ How success can be a trap,” said García Bernal.
“Everyone trains you to get there, but no one teaches you to say goodbye, to get off the ride and they abandon you when that happens,” said Luna. “I thought it was a really cool idea that we had 10 years ago of telling the story of someone that wants to say goodbye but just can’t.”
García Bernal plays Esteban “La Máquina,” or “The Machine” Osuna. Luna plays his best friend and manager Andy Luján, and actress and singer Eiza González plays Irasema, a journalist digging into the boxing underworld and Osuna’s ex-wife.
A shared appreciation for boxing and its history in Mexico
The groundbreaking actors, directors, producers and lifelong friends chose boxing and its rich history in Mexico as the vehicle for “La Máquina.” García Bernal has been a boxing fan since his youth and began training professionally roughly 12 years ago.
In 2007, Luna produced a documentary on the life of legendary Mexican boxing champion, Julio César Chávez.
“I remember my whole country stopping to watch Julio César fight,” said Luna. “A country with so many class issues and so different and vast and diverse, from the north to the south. Suddenly, everyone cared about the same story, and it was his.”
Luna researched what Chávez meant socially and politically.
“How the politics used him, how the system, how the media told the story,” said Luna.
A story that showcases diversity in language and culture
While “La Máquina” makes history as Hulu’s first Spanish-language original series, the Mexican duo said the language was never a question.
“The beautiful thing again, and I’m gonna repeat this, because I think it’s great news, is that Hulu said, ‘Why not?” said Luna.
The series showcases diversity in language and culture, including Spanish and Portuguese. Among those represented on screen: Cuban and Filipino characters, and Latin American music spanning decades and genres.
“We wanted to do this in Mexico City, where we live, because it is such a place of such a heterogeneous amalgam of incredible stories from all over the world,” said García Bernal.
The show is a testament to the mission of the production house Luna and García Bernal co-founded, La Corriente del Golfo, named after the Gulf Stream.
“It just shows the interconnectivity we have as humans and the planet,” said García Bernal.
“Without the gulf stream, the climate wouldn’t be what it is,” he added.
“It was kind of like, we want to bring this warmth and these stories everywhere.”
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