10 Netflix TV Shows and Movies Filmed in Morocco (June 2018)
Heading to Morocco? These Netflix TV shows and movies filmed in Morocco will help you prepare for your trip from the comfort of your couch. Note that the historical dramas tend to be from Spain, since Morocco was partially under Spanish rule during the first half of the twentieth century.
Here are 10 TV shows and movies set in Morocco on Netflix streaming in the US as of June 1, 2018; many are also available in other countries. Watch them while you can, because content disappears as licensing agreements expire.
1. The Time in Between (El Tiempo Entre Costuras)
Charming period drama based on a María Dueñas novel set during the Spanish Civil War. The story follows young Spanish dressmaker-turned-spy Sira Quiroga from Madrid to many gorgeous locations in Tangier and Tetouan, then the capital of the Spanish Protectorate of Morocco.
2. Morocco: Love in Times of War (Tiempos de Guerra)
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Historical drama chronicling the adventures and romantic entanglements of upper-class Spanish volunteer nurses in war-torn Spanish Morocco in the 1920s. Enjoyable but soapy. Disclaimer: While the series is set in the tiny Spanish enclave of Melilla on Morocco’s northern coast, it was actually filmed in Spain’s Canary Islands.
3. La Reina del Sur
This addictive edge-of-your-seat telenovela, an adaptation of the best-selling novel of the same name by Spanish author Arturo Pérez-Reverte, chronicles the rise to power of a young Mexican woman who becomes the most powerful drug trafficker in southern Spain. Beautiful filming locations on the Moroccan coast and in Mexico, Spain, and Colombia.
4. Much Loved
Heartfelt French-Moroccan drama about four female sex workers in Marrakech dealing with the dangers and stigma that come with their profession. The film’s themes of prostitution, extramarital sex, and homosexuality caused a scandal in Morocco, and it was banned. The controversy resulted in death threats to the cast, and lead actress Loubna Abidar had to flee the country after being violently attacked. The censorship backfired, however, bringing the film worldwide attention.
5. Neckan
In 1956 Morocco, a Spanish lawyer adopted as a child uncovers a murderous plot as he searches for the truth about his biological family. Set in Tetouan, the capital of the Protectorate in the last days of Spanish dominance over Morocco.
6. Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown
This captivating series follows outspoken TV personality Anthony Bourdain as he travels the globe exploring the cuisine and cultures of off-the-beaten-path places. In Season 1, Episode 6, Bourdain channels his hero William S. Burroughs in Tangier, Morocco, where he drinks mint tea, explores the souk, and discovers the strange and the colorful.
7. Amazing Hotels: Life Beyond the Lobby
Episode 4 of this fascinating BBC Two series takes us behind the scenes of the stunning Royal Mansour hotel in Marrakech, built with a limitless budget at the command of Morocco’s king. Guest quarters consist of a complex of luxurious riads serviced by private butlers who appear as if by magic from the hotel’s labyrinth of underground tunnels. The show hosts also take interesting side trips outside the hotel walls.
8. Cooked
This enlightening docu-series based on the best-selling book by food writer Michael Pollan explores how cooking transforms food and shapes our world.
About half of Season 1, Episode 3 is filmed in Morocco, starting with a lovely scene of a mother explaining the ancient traditions of baking to her son. The viewer is then transported to a Moroccan communal bakery, a wheat farm, and a traditional water-powered stone mill to learn about the sacred art of bread making. You’ll never view bread the same way again.
9. Cannabis
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When a boatload of cannabis belonging to Moroccan drug lord El Feo is hijacked, the robbery has repercussions stretching across three countries. Entertaining and suspenseful series about the Mediterranean hashish trade set in Morocco, Spain, and France.
10. Departures
Full disclosure: Despite its gorgeous cinematography, this show about three Canadian bros partying their way around the world isn’t really my cup of tea. However, it’s worth checking out Season 2, Episode 1 to follow their adventures from southern Spain to Essaouira, Fez, and the Atlas Mountains.
Bonus: TV Shows and Movies Shot in Morocco on Amazon Prime
If you’re an Amazon Prime member, don’t miss these TV shows and films made in Morocco available to stream for free. These shows are available in the US as of June 3, 2018; many may also be available in other countries.
Hideous Kinky
Disenchanted with the dreary conventions of English life, 25-year-old Julia (Kate Winslet) heads for Morocco with her children, six-year-old Lucy and precocious eight-year-old Bea. After the girls match their mother with gentle Moroccan acrobat and con man Bilal, sexual gears are set in motion, and he moves in, serving as a surrogate father.
Crossing Borders
Inspiring documentary that follows four Moroccan and four American university students as they travel together through Morocco and, in the process of discovering “The Other,” discover themselves.
Morocco: Quest for the Kasbah
Join Richard Bangs, known as the father of modern adventure travel, as he seeks a new meaning for the Kasbah in a country where men from all nations have sought refuge through the ages. The journey begins in Marrakesh, dips down to Essaouria, travels over the Atlas Mountains, and to the desert on the eastern border, then goes north to Fès, Tangier, Rabat, and Casablanca.
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I can’t wait to check these out!
Update: only the last two are available on Netflix here for me. Grrr…
Thanks for the update from Germany, Rainier. What a shame! I wish licensing agreements weren’t so strict so the Netflix catalog could expand more globally.