“First they got the coke, then they got the money.” From Brazilian director of “Tropa de Elite” and “RoboCop” Jose Padliha comes a serialized account of one of the most infamous drug kingpins of all time: Pablo Escobar.

The ten-piece first season premiered little over a week ago and has already amassed a following. Think “Goodfellas” meets Walter White, but with a documentarian twist.

There is a reason why Hollywood is currently obsessed with the cult of Pablo Escobar, from the 2014 film “Escobar: Paradise Lost” to the upcoming Escobar biopic, “Escobar” starring Javier Bardem and Penelope Cruz. As AMC’s “Breaking Bad” demonstrated, people love rooting for the anti-hero. Audiences love to watch as he falls into a deeper, more torrid, morally ambiguous world where “good” refers to the quality of the drugs you are selling, and “bad” is your competition.

The Netflix series states in the beginning that some events, names and locations have been changed for artistic purposes, but it is still very faithful to the story and to the facts. It was shot on location in Colombia, its cast is largely Latin American and the dialogue is equally balanced between English and Spanish. Moreover, it had Drug Enforcement Agency Agents Murphy and Peña brought on as consultants, with their lives being portrayed on screen.

“But it’s more than that — Escobar’s story remains interesting because of what we’re seeing in Mexico right now,” said Peña, who is portrayed on screen by Game of Thrones star Pedro Pascal.

 Personally, as a Mexican who lived in the country during a narco-infused period, felt the violence firsthand, decapitations, shootings and all, I concur: It is interesting because it is still relevant.

There is a powerful story to be told here, a real socio-political one that affects society to its core, and whether it is meth, weed, cocaine or television — the drug problem, as Netflix knows, makes a whole lot of money.  

Narcos premiered on Netflix on August 28.

Email Eugenia Cavazos at [email protected].