MANILA, Philippines – Citing the need for “people to know what’s really happening in the Philippines,” actor and staunch Duterte supporter Robin Padilla wants to create and star in a 8-episode series about former police chief Ronald dela Rosa.
His choice network? None of them. He’d rather it stream on Netflix, one of the world’s biggest streaming platforms.
“That’s part of my agreement with the general,” Robin told Rappler on the sidelines of the press conference for a movie about Dela Rosa, which he also stars in.
“I really want the people to know what’s happening in the country. And on Netflix, the truth prevails [like in] Narcos, about what happened in Mexico. I really want a project so people can see not the government’s view, not the view of those who are anti-government, but my view,” he added.
Asked if it was a done deal with Netflix, Robin said: “Hopefully it pushes through because it’s still under negotiation.”
Padilla, known best for his action roles, is among the staunchest supporter of President Rodrigo Duterte.
Dela Rosa, meanwhile, is Duterte’s first police chief. It was Dela Rosa who led the Philippine National Police (PNP) when Duterte’s campaign against illegal drugs, dubbed the “war on drugs,” was first launched.
Under Dela Rosa’s watch, police apprehended hundreds of thousands of drug suspects. They also tallied the deaths of tens of thousands of alleged drug personalities – both at the hands of police and vigilantes. Police themselves, however, have been linked to abuses and even extrajudicial deaths in the drug war.
A Dela Rosa flick is not among the upcoming shows Netflix has announced in its slate of content from Asia. The streaming platform already carried a Filipino-made series about the campaign on illegal drugs. Amo, by Brillante Mendoza, was the first Filipino television series launched on the entertainment platform. – Rappler.com
