The I.P. proverb remains true: if you’ve got a popular film brand, a spin-off on television seems inevitable. While it’s more than 20 years later, “City Of God: The Fight Rages On” is a spin-off series based on the Oscar-nominated “City Of God” crime thriller which launched the career of Brazilian director Fernando Meirelles (though it was also co-directed by Kátia Lund). Released in 2002, the drama was thought to be stuck in the Best International Film category, “City Of God” was the rare film that was nominated in four categories outside what was then called “Foreign Film,” including Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay.
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And so, while a little belated, “City Of God: The Fight Rages” is set to debut on MAX and HBO Latino on August 25. The six-episode original series ‘The Fight Rages On’ is set two decades after the events of the international award-winning film. New episodes will debut on subsequent Sundays at the same time.
The series includes the return of memorable characters, many of them played by the same original actors, such as Rocket (Wilson), Berenice, Bradock, Cinthia, Barbantinho and Melonhead, as well as new faces that will bring the continuation of this story to life, including Jerusa, Lígia and Genivaldo Curió.
The production’s cast includes big Brazilian names such as Alexandre Rodrigues, Roberta Rodrigues, Thiago Martins, Sabrina Rosa, Kiko Marques, Edson Oliveira, Andréia Horta, Marcos Palmeira, Eli Ferreira, Luellem de Castro, Jefferson Brasil, Otávio Linhares, Rafael Lozano, Leandro Daniel, Luiz Bertazzo and debuting talents from communities in Rio de Janeiro such as Cidade de Deus, Vidigal and Mangueira.
“City Of God: The Fight Rages On” is an HBO Original series produced by O2 Filmes. The production is directed by Aly Muritiba, and Bruno Costa joins as second director. The script was written by Sérgio Machado, Renata Di Carmo, Armando Praça, Estevão Ribeiro, Rodrigo Felha and Muritiba. Andrea Barata Ribeiro and Fernando Meirelles are producers and Cris Abi and Gustavo Gontijo are coproducers on behalf of O2 Filmes. Mariano Cesar, Anouk Aaron, and Mônica Albuquerque are executive producers on behalf of Warner Bros. Discovery.
‘The Fight Rages’ premieres August 25. Watch the new trailer below.