Fans Are Wondering If Netflix's Crime Drama 'Somos' Is Based on a True Story

Jul. 1 2021, Published 5:14 p.m. ET

An intriguing storyline is the key to garnering interest in any show. From a man wrongly accused of murder and seeking revenge in Netflix's Who Killed Sara? to a teenage girl who discovers that her love letters to crushes have been sent out in To All the Boys I've Loved Before, the possibilities are endless.

Now, the Netflix crime-based drama series Somos is generating major buzz — and fans are wondering if it recounts true events. Read on as we give you the lowdown on Netflix’s new show.

Netflix’s ‘Somos’ is partially based on a true story.

Showrunners do a great job of creating fabulous storylines — some from real-life events and others from their imaginations. However, Netflix’s newest sensation Somos fits the former.  

Netflix shares that Somos was inspired by an investigative article by Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Ginger Thompson that told the story of a 2011 massacre in Allende, Mexico, orchestrated by members of the Zetas drug cartel. 

In Somos, the series focuses heavily on the people affected by the killings. It also sheds light on the events leading up to the unfortunate incident, including the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) investigation of a Zetas cartel leader, Jose Vasquez Jr.

At the time, Jose became an informant and allowed the DEA to track down some of the cartel’s most wanted members, Miguel Ángel Treviño and his ​brother Omar, per The Cinemaholic. 

The information was leaked and the Treviño brothers sought out payback. And that’s when the massacre of killings, kidnappings, looting, and more occurred.

However, viewers shouldn’t expect for all the details to play out in the series. 

“Although Somos is grounded in true stories, it is essentially a fiction,” series creator and executive producer James Schamus explained in a press release. “We didn’t want the people in Allende to worry that we might be misremembering or misrepresenting real people."

He continued, "So we took elements from many stories, and then created new characters to enact and expand upon them. In this way, everyone in Allende will still see themselves and their neighbors in the series.”

How many episodes are there of Netflix’s ‘Somos’?

Many crime-based series deliver at least five episodes per season. We’ve seen it with Lupin. 

Season 1 of Somos contains six episodes. Most of the episodes average at around 45 minutes, with Episode 6 streaming for 73 minutes. 

The first thought for many viewers may be that six episodes is not enough to tell the full story of the Allende people. But, since the series is quickly becoming a breakout on the platform, the sky’s the limit for the future.

Netflix has yet to announce Somos Season 2, but it’s quite possible. After all, many crime-based shows on the platform are given a Season 2 and sometimes beyond. 

Somos is currently available to stream on Netflix.

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7pbXSramam6Ses7p6wqikaKhfnsBuv86mpqxlkpbAprCMqKVmmV2pv7axjKyrqKqp