iWorld
Disney+’s big bet: A daily telenovela on OTT globally
MUMBAI: 11 October marked a new way of program scheduling for Disney+. The streamer dropped five episodes of drama series Return to Las Sabinas on its service in Spain and all over the world (in India, viewers can watch it on Disney+Hotstar ) and on Hulu in the US. So what’s new about this?
What is new about Return to Las Sabinas is the gutsy decision that Disney+ Spain vice-president original production Sofía Fábregas has taken. Episodes of the telenovela drama are being dropped daily weekday morning for the next 65 days for the 70 episode series. (For diehard melodrama viewers: in India daily episodes are being introduced Monday to Friday at 12:30 pm with English subtitles .)
While that is pretty déjà vu for television viewers and programmers in India, for the Spaniards to use the television daily drop routine on an OTT platform is pretty daring.
“It’s yet to be confirmed if it’s going to be a success or not, but Disney was willing to take the risk to be the first with something that was both established, but because nobody had tried it [in streaming], also very new,” Fábregas told Deadline. “We wanted to take something that the audience was accustomed to and put it in an unexpected place.”
But with Fábregas confessing that it is a big risk, she’s taken steps to at least reduce it by hiring the best to put their might behind the production as well as innovating on production values. For one, she hired Banijay Iberia’s Diagonal production company to do the job. Then she roped in experienced show runner and creator Eulàlia Carillo as its executive producer while bringing on veteran Jordi Frades to helm the show.
Instead of the tacky indoor studio sets that telenovelas are normally shot in, she decided to film it on natural outdoor and indoor locations in and around Barcelona to make it look premium. Each 45 minute episode was shot over two and a half days with two cameras giving it a cinematic look instead of the one day given to normal daily dramas. Post production was also allocated twice the amount that normal dramas get to make the output on screen look snazzy. Writing was given two and a half years so that the right hook points, cliff hangers could stand out and bring viewers back daily.
The series stars top Latino actors like Celia Freijeiro, Andrés Velencoso, Olivia Molina, Natalia Sánchez, Nancho Novo, and María Casali.
The story follows two sisters, Gracia and Paloma, who return to their childhood home in Las Sabina to care for their father. Gracia reconnects with her first love, Miguel, who is now engaged to Ester. However, his brother Tano, is still in love with her and refuses to back down. Paloma takes over the family lands and clashes with landowner Paca Utrera, who has a nefarious plan for the town. In the meantime, the girl’s father, Emilio, attempts to reconcile with his daughters, but a hidden secret complicates his efforts.
Sounds familiar? Like many other telenovelas or drama series?
Frades told Deadline that the idea is not to have a very different plot. “We want the people to find love, passion, drama, comedy and everything they like in a daily show, but maybe with a little upgrade.”
Even Carillo accepts that. Speaking to Deadline he said: “It starts, as any other fiction does, with a question: What would you be willing to forgive? The series is about forgiveness and second chances. It’s also about first love and how it impacts on our lives, and also new loves and how we find love even when we don’t expect it.”
Fábregas told Deadline that she’s going by her gut. She said: “I would say it’s a bet, and let’s see if we win,” she noted. “It is a bet because we haven’t done it yet, not us or not the other streamers. We’re programming against other streamers. Could it change the rules? Potentially, yes. Maybe in five years all the streamers will have programming like this.”
Or could it happen earlier?
iWorld
Why Peaky Blinders is one of television’s biggest hits that still deserves more attention
Six seasons, multiple awards and the release of Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man bring the Shelby saga back into the spotlight
In the crowded universe of streaming content, only a handful of shows manage to leave a lasting cultural footprint. Peaky Blinders is overwhelmingly considered one of the biggest global hits of the past decade. Yet many viewers still haven’t fully explored the dark, gripping world of the Shelby family.
Originally produced for the UK’s BBC and later finding a massive global audience through Netflix, the series quietly grew from a British period drama into a worldwide streaming phenomenon.
Created by Steven Knight, the show follows the rise of the Shelby crime family in post-First World War Birmingham. What begins as a gritty street-gang story gradually expands into a sweeping narrative about ambition, politics, power and survival.
At the centre of the saga is Thomas Shelby, portrayed with extraordinary depth by Cillian Murphy. The casting of Murphy is widely regarded as perfect for the role. With piercing eyes, restrained dialogue and an almost hypnotic screen presence, he transforms Shelby into one of the most unforgettable characters in modern screen storytelling.
Murphy’s brilliance lies in his restraint. He rarely shouts or performs theatrically. Instead, a quiet stare, a calculated pause or a subtle shift in expression conveys the emotional storms within the character. Beneath the ruthless gang leader is a war veteran carrying trauma, guilt and loneliness. Murphy captures this complexity with remarkable precision, making Thomas Shelby both terrifying and deeply human.
Beyond its central performance, Peaky Blinders stands out for its unfiltered portrayal of reality. The show does not romanticise crime. Instead, it exposes the harsh social conditions of early 20th-century Britain, from poverty and class struggle to political extremism and the psychological scars left by war.
The series also presents powerful female characters who hold their own within the Shelby empire. Polly Gray, played by Helen McCrory, is the strategic backbone of the family and one of the most formidable figures in the story. Women in the series shape decisions, influence power structures and challenge the rigid social norms of the time.
Across six seasons, the narrative grows dramatically in scale. What begins in the smoky streets of Birmingham evolves into a story involving political conspiracies, fascism and international criminal networks.
The series has also earned significant critical acclaim. It won the BAFTA Television Award for Best Drama Series in 2018 and multiple National Television Awards for Best Drama, cementing its reputation as one of Britain’s most celebrated modern shows.
Another defining feature of the series is its iconic music. The show’s opening theme, Red Right Hand by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, became instantly recognisable and widely associated with the Shelby universe. Combined with a powerful soundtrack featuring artists such as Arctic Monkeys and Radiohead, the music helped shape the show’s dark, stylish identity and became hugely popular among fans.
And the Shelby story is not over yet.
In fact, its legacy is unfolding right now. The long-awaited feature-length continuation, Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man, was released on March 6, 2026, bringing the Shelby universe from streaming screens to cinemas and giving fans a new chapter in the saga.
For viewers who have not yet stepped into this world, the timing could not be better.
Six gripping seasons are ready to binge on Netflix. A new film has just arrived in theatres. And at the heart of it all stands one of the most magnetic performances in modern drama by Cillian Murphy.
So if Peaky Blinders has been sitting on your watchlist for years, this weekend is your moment.
So, by order of the Peaky fookin’ Blinders, consider this your cue to finally step into the ruthless world of Thomas Shelby. Pour yourself a drink, clear your schedule and press the play button. Because when the Peaky Blinders give an order, you listen.
