Jotadé, a four-episode crime series adapted from Santiago Díaz’s 2025 novel of the same name, is in production, Netflix said on Monday 26 October in its newsroom. The announcement did not give a first day of filming. Daniel Calparsoro directs for MOD Producciones, with Isaac Díaz in the title role opposite Aura Garrido, Jose Coronado and Jaime Lorente.
Key facts
- Jotadé: Netflix limited series, four episodes, set in Madrid; start of production announced 26 October 2026.
- Based on Jotadé (Alfaguara, Penguin Random House Grupo Editorial, 2025), the first novel in Santiago Díaz’s series about the character.
- Production company: MOD Producciones, with Fernando Bovaira as producer and Guillem Vidal-Folch as executive producer.
- Director: Daniel Calparsoro. Writers: Isa Sánchez and Daniel Corpas.
- Release date, budget and filming locations: not announced.
The book reached Spanish shops in March 2025, about 19 months before Netflix announced the production. Jotadé follows Netflix’s La Regenta with Elástica Films, which began shooting on 23 October, and comes from a producer that delivered another literary crime adaptation to the streamer this year.
The book and its police officer
Santiago Díaz, born in Madrid in 1971, spent about 25 years as a film and television screenwriter before turning to crime novels, Penguin Libros notes. His trilogy about inspector Indira Ramos (El buen padre, “The Good Father”; Las otras niñas, “The Other Girls”; and Indira) came out through Reservoir Books. Alfaguara published Jotadé on 13 March 2025, Nueva Tribuna reported.
Its lead, subinspector Juan de Dios “Jotadé” Cortés, first appeared as a supporting character in Indira, the third Ramos book, as Nueva Tribuna noted. Díaz told Zenda the character was born in that trilogy. Alfaguara published the second instalment, El amo (“The Master”), on 12 March 2026.
In Netflix’s synopsis, the outspoken officer, loyal to colleagues and to his Romani community, investigates a violent crime that leads to a criminal network.
Isa Sánchez and Daniel Corpas wrote the scripts, and Díaz is not on the writing team. Speaking to El Correo in March 2025, he said the rights to his books had been sold and that it was unlikely he would script an adaptation himself.
The producers, director and cast
Fernando Bovaira founded MOD in 2007. His earlier producer credits include Alejandro Amenábar’s The Others and The Sea Inside (Mar adentro), which won the Academy Award for best foreign-language film. For Netflix, MOD has made the film The Champion (El campeón) and the Arturo Pérez-Reverte adaptation The Final Problem (El problema final), according to the company profile attached to the announcement. What’s on Netflix reports that the series arrived in September 2026.
Calparsoro’s recent credits listed by Netflix are Salvador and Bank Under Siege (Asalto al Banco Central). Coronado also starred in The Final Problem and in The Truthers (Los creyentes). Garrido’s credits include The Ministry of Time (El Ministerio del Tiempo) and The Innocent (El inocente), and Netflix lists Money Heist (La casa de papel) and Elite (Élite) for Lorente. The ensemble includes María de Nati and Alberto Olmo, with Javier Gutiérrez as a special guest. Netflix gave no earlier credits for Isaac Díaz.
Netflix’s Spanish slate
The Spanish trade site Audiovisual451 counts several other projects Netflix has announced in Spain in recent days, among them an adaptation of The Whisper of Fire (El susurro del fuego) and the feature Rata (“Rat”). Its list also includes a fictional miniseries inspired by a real criminal case and a reality show with content creator Plex. In June 2025 Netflix pledged to invest more than €1bn (more than $1.1bn at the time) in Spain between 2025 and 2028.
Netflix has not disclosed the budget, the shooting schedule or where in Spain the crew is filming, nor whether it holds an option on El amo.
Our reading
For Netflix, Jotadé is a repeat order. MOD has followed The Final Problem with another book adaptation for the platform, both with Coronado in the cast. This time the producer has brought a living author’s series rather than a single book. With El amo already in shops, a second run would have its source material in place if the first one travels.
The casting puts Isaac Díaz, for whom Netflix listed no earlier credits, among faces its audiences know from Money Heist and The Innocent. The next evidence is the release date and a place in Netflix’s global non-English top 10. After that, the question is whether El amo follows.