Sara Polo Madrid
Madrid
Updated Monday, January 22, 2024-9:40 p.m.
Francisco Reyes A 'tall' villain who replicates the most Spanish Zorro after living in New York
"Zorro has returned
," reads a huge, black graffiti on the façade of a house.
Antonio Banderas
,
Douglas Fairbanks
,
Tyrone Power
,
Guy Williams
,
Alain Delon
.
The list of performers who have worn the famous mask and left their
Z
marked with a sword is long and prestigious.
Starting Thursday, a new name will join her, one forged in
Elite
and eager to expand her dramatic range.
Miguel Bernardeau
puts on the
Zorro
suit for the latest return to the legend of the masked vigilante, first on
Prime Video
and on Sunday, on
RTVE
.
"A new
Zorro
for new times."
From the start of the series, the desire to update a character who was born in 1919 and has been revived countless times can be seen.
Those who announce the renewal are the indigenous people who originated in Los Angeles in the mid-19th century, during the Mexican domination of California.
With the novelty, the Indians refer to the noble origin that will cover the defender of the poor, previously a red man of humble and hardworking origins like them;
but the viewer perceives a further message: the new generations today would not admit the rudeness with which the character was born, especially in his relationship with women.
"It is clearly an evolution of the story of
Zorro
, more modernized, but always maintaining its essence, which is the adventures and the fight for justice with those most in need," confirms
Bernardeau
in a video call from Mexico with his fellow protagonist,
Renata .
Notni
.
She embodies the main change in fiction: here, women are much more than the pretty complement to the hero.
Here, women are empowered.
Miguel Bernardeau and Renata Notni star in Zorro.PRIME VIDEO / SECUOYA STUDIOS
"We had all already seen different versions of the story, but it took a lot of pressure off of us to see that the new script created completely different characters," says the actress, a superstar in her native Mexico, where she has starred in highly successful soap operas.
And she emphasizes: "We did not make a replica of what others created before, but we built our own story, much more contemporary and that will connect with today's issues."
What absolutely differentiates this series from its predecessors, according to
Bernardeau
, is especially appreciated from the third chapter onwards, when, once the presentations are over, the action really begins: "Of course, we respect the classic codes of humor and adventure, even "We exploit them, there are spectacular moments."
It was the most exciting scenes that made the two protagonists sweat, and things began with a paradoxical anecdote.
Miguel Bernardeau
arrived on the set of
Zorro
the first day with an unconfessed fear: as a child he had been bitten by a donkey and since then, he had assumed that he had an allergy to horses.
Those childhood urban legends that one believes forever but that are not always as we remembered them.
Or they simply pass.
The fact is that it was a great joy for the Valencian actor to discover that horses did not pose any problem for him.
Thank goodness, because his character spends most of his time riding
Tornado
.
The real big surprise was discovering that the one who did have an allergy, and a strong one, was his co-star.
"I had no idea, but I had to take little pills all the time," confirms
Notni
.
Miguel Bernardeau plays Zorro.PRIME VIDEO / SECUOYA STUDIOS
Before starting filming, the team spent three months preparing the disciplines that were most foreign to them: sword, whip and horse riding.
And yet, the most complicated thing for him was finding the tone of the series: "Understanding that this is a family adventure code, and that we have to protect it a lot and not try to take things further than necessary, not get too carried away." because of the intensity," he says.
Son of
Miguel Ángel Bernardeau
, producer of
Tell Me How It Happened
, and
Ana Duato
,
Bernardeau
Jr. has always been asked by the most critical public to prove that he is where he is on his own merits.
You can rest assured, the role of
Zorro
cost him no less than seven castings:
"He was not given away, no
," he assumes, "I think he was because of my appearance, so not Latin."
The fact is that he came to the eighth test, this time via Zoom, with his partner, and it was the worst of his life.
«They told us to look at each other and I didn't clarify which side I had to look at, so, having had enough, I told them: 'I can't take it anymore, give me the role now or give it to someone else.'
But I stand up,'” he recalls.
It is clear that this worked.