The City of God: The Fight Rages On distributor, Max, announced the premiere date of the series earlier tonight. The HBO Original series, which serves as a sequel to the 2002 Brazilian film City of God, will premiere on Max on August 25. Each of the six episodes in the show will drop once every Sunday through September 29.
The events of the O2 Filmes production occur two decades following the film, directed by Fernando Meirelles from a screenplay by Braulio Mantovani. Based on Paulo Lins’ eponymous novel, City of God follows two boys growing up in the crime-ridden favelas of Rio de Janeiro. Rocket (Alexandre Rodrigues), the narrator, dreams of escaping the violence through photography. Rocker's friend Jose "Ze" Pequeno (Douglas Silva), on the other hand, is drawn to the power and status of gang life. So he uses his friend Rocket’s photographs of him for greater popularity in the city as a war breaks out between him and his adversary, Mane Galinha/Knockout Ned (Leandro Firmino).
The film shows the allure and brutality of gang culture. It is remembered for the performances by Firmino, Rodrigues, and Silva; Meirelles’ kinetic direction; Daniel Rezende's fast-paced edits; and Cesar Charlone’s dynamic camera work.
According to the official logline, “The plot of the sequel series unfolds in the early 2000s when the release of a young drug dealer from prison puts Cidade de Deus back into dispute. Residents find themselves trapped between drug traffickers, militias and public authorities, but the need to escape this cycle makes the community unite to face the oppressor.”
Alexandre Rodrigues, Thiago Martins, Roberta Rodrigues, Sabrina Rosa, Kiko Marques, and Edson Oliveira reprise their roles from the 2002 original. Non-returning actors comprise Andreia Horta, Marcos Palmeira, Jefferson Brasil, Eli Ferreira, Luellem de Castro, Otávio Linhares, Rafael Lozano, Leandro Daniel, Luiz Bertazzo, and newcomers from Brazilian communities such as City of God, Vidigal, and Mangueira.
Its screenwriters comprise Sergio Machado, Renata Di Carmo, Armando Praca, Estevao Ribeiro, Rodrigo Felha, and Muritiba. Andrea Barata Ribeiro and Meirelles will produce City of God: The Fight Rages On, while Cris Abi and Gustavo Gontijo will serve as co-producers. Aly Muritiba and Bruno Costa are attached as its primary and second directors, respectively. Mariano Cesar, Anouk Aaron, and Monica Albuquerque of Warner Bros. Discovery are also on board as executive producers.