Netflix Remakes Argentine Film 'Nine Queens' As Series With 'Money Heist' Stars

Álvaro Morte and Patrick Criado, both known to audiences from the global hit La Casa de Papel (Money Heist), are reuniting on screen for a new Netflix series. The streaming giant announced production has begun in Madrid on Nueve Reinas (Nine Queens), a Spanish-language adaptation of the critically acclaimed 2000 Argentine film of the same name. The reimagined story aims to stay true to the spirit of the original, set in a world of con artists whose deception, improvisation and performance drive an incredible tale with some unexpected turns. The original Nueve Reinas was written and directed by Fabián Bielinsky and produced by Patagonik. It starred Ricardo Darín and Gastón Pauls as two con artists who join forces to sell counterfeit rare stamps to a wealthy collector. The film, a huge hit when it premiered in Argentina, holds a 92% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and is widely regarded as one of the country's best and a cinema classic. Darín, one of Argentina's most internationally recognized actors, has built an extensive body of work across decades. He is perhaps best known recently for Argentina, 1985 and the sci-fi series El Eternauta, which last year stormed to No. 1 on Netflix's Global Top 10. The new Netflix series transplants Nueve Reinas to 2012 Madrid, setting the action against the backdrop of Spain's economic crisis. Morte plays Marcos, an unscrupulous veteran con artist who crosses paths with Juan, a broke young man barely keeping his family afloat, played by Criado. What starts as a 24-hour partnership to pull off small scams escalates into the biggest job of their lives: selling legendary counterfeit stamps, the Nine Queens, as genuine to a ruthless tycoon. Joining Morte and Criado are Aura Garrido (Santuario, A Private Affair), Margarida Corceiro (Point Nemo), and Jose Coronado (Rotten Legacy, Wrong Side of the Tracks) as the ruthless tycoon they are trying to con. The new series was created by Xosé Morais and Víctor Sierra, who also serve as writers and executive producers alongside Luis Ferrón, Gonzalo Salazar-Simpson, Guido Rud and Juan Pablo Galli. Directors Álex Rodrigo and Jorge Saavedra lead the project, with cinematography by Andreu Adam and Víctor Benavides and production design by Juan Pedro de Gaspar. Madrid-based production company LAZONA (Giants, The Longest Night) is at the helm. Adapting a feature film into a series gives the creative team room the original format never had, allowing for deeper character development and more nuanced storytelling that builds on the world Bielinsky established in under two hours. The series uses that space to dig into the social commentary at the heart of the original. The two con artists are portrayed as a reflection of a country where the line between victims and scammers is becoming increasingly blurred.