The raving success of Globoplay’s medical drama “Under Pressure” — which ran for five heavily acclaimed seasons between 2017 and 2022 — was bound to see Brazil firmly step into procedurals, and Amazon Prime Video’s “Suture” is proof of just that. The eight-episode series, selected as part of the Berlinale Series Market Selects, follows gifted medical student Ícaro (Humberto Morais) and surgeon Mancini (Claudia Abreu) as the duo is forced to work for a criminal organization as their underground medical support team.
Co-produced by Brazil’s Boutique Filmes and Miami-based production and distribution banner Spiral International, “Suture” aired on Amazon Prime Video at the tail end of 2024. The medical procedure is the latest co-production between Boutique Filmes and Spiral International, who also worked together on “Falco” and “Negociador.”
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Speaking with Variety ahead of Berlin, Spiral International CEO Zasha Robles — who signs as a showrunner and executive producer of “Suture” — says he and his team were “enthused” when they first came across “Suture” as they were actively looking for a procedural. That the series allowed the company to strengthen its relationship with Boutique Filmes and its partner Gustavo Mello was another major plus.
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“I do this job shoulder to shoulder with Gustavo,” says Robles. “We had the responsibility to finance the show and find a home for it with Amazon, and then finding international co-production and investors that came in later as we developed the show. We also had another hat on as showrunners and we were looking for a very commercial show that didn’t only speak to Brazilians but also connected with international audiences — I think we achieved that in the sense that you can take the show and have it play anywhere.”
Of casting Claudia Abreu, one of the most lauded actors currently working in Brazil and a massively popular telenovela star, Robles says he “grew up” with Globo telenovelas and was used to seeing Abreu as “the pretty girl.” “Later on when she morphed into a great villain because she has a great personality and can walk that line very well. What was interesting about Mancini is that she could be perceived as a villain initially but is weakened by the nature of our other lead.”
Pairing Abreu with newcomer Morais proved a fruitful combination as the two are now scheduled to star in Globo’s next 7 PM slot telenovela, “Dona de Mim.” “Humberto had only had a minor role in another broadcaster, and now he is going to be the lead of a Globo telenovela. It’s exciting to see this pairing we created continue to work so well.”
On following in the footsteps of the success of “Under Pressure,” Robles says that, although the procedural element makes the series “more commercial,” he wishes he could have the volume of episodes of successful shows such as “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Law and Order.” “We would do much better if we had subsequent seasons and more volume. It could become an emblematic series.”
“‘Under Pressure’ and other successful shows got to where they are also because of the volume of episodes and the fact you have individual stories in each episode,” adds the exec. “You reach quick satisfaction within 45 minutes; you don’t have to binge.”
Robles emphasizes how the series model went from 26 episodes to 15 to 12, and now there are even short four-episode seasons available on streamers. “That’s a major mistake, in my opinion.” “Putting my distribution hat on, what is selling nowadays is ‘CSI,’ ‘Grey’s Anatomy,’ ‘Law and Order,’ and series with multiple seasons and multiple episodes, especially procedurals. Those are shows that were made when our industry still took risks and when dips were still acceptable.”
As for what he would like to achieve out of Berlin, Robles says the idea is to “leave with a couple of commissions so we can place a Brazilian show outside of Brazil, which is not something you typically see.” “You see Brazilian shows on Netflix and Amazon, but you don’t see a Brazilian show picked up by a local network in the UK or Spain, for example,” he adds. “That’s what we want.”
“Suture” is created by Fabio Montanari and co-produced by Boutique Filmes and Spiral International. The showrunners are Zasha Robles and Gustavo Mello. Diego Martins and Jéssica Queiroz direct.
