12 Best Brazilian TV Shows on Netflix (2019)

1.  3%

This addictive dystopian thriller was Netflix’s first Portuguese-language original series. In a future where the elite inhabit an island paradise far from the crowded slums, you get only one chance to join the 3% saved from squalor.

2. O Mecanismo

A massive scandal erupts in Brazil during an investigation of alleged government corruption via oil and construction companies. This Netflix Original directed by Narcos‘ José Padilha is loosely based on the real-life “Lava Jato” bribery scandal involving former presidents Lula da Silva and Dilma Rousseff.

3. Killer Ratings

Chilling true crime docuseries about Brazilian TV presenter and politician Wallace Souza, who hosted a top-rated crime reality show in the gang-plagued Amazonian city of Manaus. In a surreal twist, Souza was accused of masterminding the brutal crimes he reported on to boost his show’s ratings.

The real-life events behind the dramatized series Pacto de Sangue (below).

4. Coisa Mais Linda (Most Beautiful Thing)

Netflix Original period drama set in 1950s Rio as the first bossa nova chords are being played. As soon as Malu arrives in the city, she discovers she’s been abandoned and robbed by her husband.

Everything seems lost, but Malu eventually finds new friends and a new version of herself, with the courage to fulfill her dream of opening a music club.

5. Vai Anitta

This engaging Netflix original docuseries goes behind the scenes with Brazilian superstar Anitta as the singer reveals how she’s building her international career. Lots of colloquial Portuguese.

6. Samantha!

Fun Brazilian comedy that follows Samantha, a child star in the ’80s, who clings to the fringes of celebrity with harebrained schemes to launch herself back into the spotlight. This clever satire is a good opportunity to pick up Brazilian slang.

7. O Escolhido (The Chosen One)

Binge-worthy creepy thriller based on the Mexican series Niño Santo. This Netflix Original follows three young doctors determined to bring a Zika vaccine to the remote Pantanal. They find themselves trapped in an isolated community whose leader has supernatural healing powers.

8. Pacto de Sangue (Blood Pact)

^{Note: No English subtitles available for trailer – tap to watch subtitled trailer on Netflix}

An ambitious TV reporter uses risky and ethically questionable methods to report on gang wars and police corruption in the Amazon port of Belém.

Loosely based on the real-life story of Wallace Souza, a Brazilian journalist from Amazonas accused of ordering executions to boost the ratings of his crime show.

While this cop drama suffers from a run-of-the-mill plot, the aerial shots of Belém and Amazonas are stunning, and it’s a good opportunity to hear the Amazonian dialect with its use of tu instead of você.

9. Borges

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Left deeply in debt after their boss flees the country, four import company employees start producing online video content to keep themselves afloat.

Created by Porta dos Fundos (“Back Door” in English), a wildly popular Brazilian YouTube channel famed for its controversial comedy sketches.

For more of Porta dos Fundos, watch their Netflix Christmas special Se Beber Não Ceie (The Last Hangover) (trailer).

10. Super Drags

^{Note: No English subtitles available for trailer – tap to watch subtitled trailer on Netflix}

In this campy adult cartoon, three gay co-workers lead double lives as drag queen superheroes, saving the LGBTQ community from evil nemeses. Brazilian singer, drag queen, and LGBTQ icon Pabllo Vittar wrote the opening song and voices the character of Goldiva. Lots of raunchy humor.

Be sure to switch the audio to Portuguese.

11. Z4

^{Note: No English subtitles available for trailer – tap to watch subtitled trailer on Netflix}

Teen musical series that follows a fading music biz veteran with just one more chance at redemption: He must assemble a hit boy band from a ragtag bunch of pop newbies. Short episodes suitable for language learners.

12. Comedians of the World

Netflix’s ambitious new global stand-up comedy series features 47 comedians from 13 regions, including three from Brazil.

All three of these half-hour Brazilian stand-up shows are great for audio comprehension and learning slang, but to me the funniest were Mhel Marrer followed by Afonso Padilha.