Friday (10), 5 am. The time of this publication marks one week of the debut of the last stage of the phenomenon La Casa de Papel. The final installments of the series were released at 5 am last Friday (3), but as Netflix warned: “The plan is over, but the legacy continues.”
And how it continues! From December 2017 to December 2021, the plot went far beyond the streaming platform. Visual elements turned into costumes, figurines and symbols of different tribes, the soundtrack inspired parodies, the scenarios brought to life activations and experiences in themed events, and various dialogues became recognized expressions regardless of the language. “Empieza el matriarcado”, would say Nairobi, one of the most beloved characters in the narrative.
From screens to real-life viewers, the series snatched the audience. At the Top10 da Netflix, metrics site with weekly global and country listings, with the most watched titles on the service, parts 3, 4 and 5 of LCDP are ranked among the top 10 positions, considering the total viewing hours of a title in the first 28 days of its release.
The impact was global, but the Brazil section shows a little more taste. The public’s relationship with the series gained another level here. A reflection of this can be seen in three videos that Netflix shared highlighting the Brazilian audience.
One of them shows the cast talking about their fans, the other brings together examples of how the series was incorporated into the country’s “everyday” and the third shows an important scene from this last season, to the sound of the iconic Bella Ciao, but in a samba version. For the fans, it was a clear tribute.
But it wasn’t just the audience that invested time and engagement with the series. The universe created by La Casa de Papel was the stage for product placement, served as inspiration for campaigns and events, in addition to being an abundant source in licensing. Check out some highlights.
Marks within the plot
Estrella Galicia, Samsung, Philips and Volkswagen are just some of the companies that were convinced by the Professor to be part of the plan. In 2019, Mónica Vizcaíno, from Estrella Galicia Spain, classified the experience in the first two seasons of La Casa de Papel as “spectacular”, which encouraged the company to renew the partnership for the following two seasons. “We believe, with all the humility in the world, that we have reinvented product placement. We work to innovate the most disruptive formats and brand integrators. In the first two seasons of La Casa de Papel, we took a step higher and transformed product placement into an action that achieves branded content,” he told PROPMARK.
Experiences
One of the things Netflix knows how to do is organize immersions in its content. In 2020, the company, in partnership with the Fever agency, created an experience simulating a bank robbery. The action “La Casa de Papel Experience” it was scheduled to take place simultaneously at the Mint, in France, and at the Palácio de Alhajas (former headquarters of one of the oldest financial institutions in Europe), in Spain. But the pandemic came and the project ended up being postponed. It remains to be seen whether activation will be resumed.
Two years before the world met Covid-19, the company made one of the biggest CCXP activations. In 2018, she transported the series’ scenario and experiences to her booth. To this day, the Netflix space is one of the most remembered at the pop culture festival.
That year, by the way, LCDP won an Emmy for Best Drama Series. In addition, it was Netflix’s debut in Interbrand’s “Best Global Brands” ranking, with an approximate value of US$ 5.5 billion.
It is worth remembering another moment that marked the activation carried out by the service: an MC show that made the main parody of the soundtrack.
Back in 2021, just days before the last installment went live, Netflix held another live event, featuring cast, special guests, and exclusive content streamed globally. The hybrid programming was aired through a digital hub with simultaneous translation into 10 different languages.
Still within this historic moment for the content company, the city of São Paulo was chosen for actions at the SubAstor Bar do Cofre (there were settings and themed drinks) and at the ZIV Gallery, at Beco do Batman (December 11 to 23, in addition to of decor and cocktails alluding to the series, there will be a Keep Walking intervention). The lineup is part of the release of the special edition of Johnnie Walker Red Label, which was inspired by the series.
Memories for fans
Speaking of products, it wasn’t just the Striding Man, symbol of Johnnie Walker, who surrendered to the charisma of the red jumpsuit. Several companies that sell apparel and accessory items have also prepared collections for fans.
References
On the side of creativity and communication, the elements of the narrative even inspired campaigns from other companies. One of them happened in 2018, in an Artplan video for Rock in Rio. In the film, tickets are again in the crosshairs of a math teacher.
Even after the last Bella Ciao, the LCDP universe is still active on the platform. One of the developments will be “Berlin”, a series with the character of Pedro Alonso as the protagonist. Another move announced mixes masked, with another house red, Round 6. The result will be a South Korean version of the Spanish series. The Professor’s plan ended. But Netflix’s is just getting started. Which brands will participate this time?
