October 16, 2020 by Mariana Gómez Spanish Culture and History, Spanish Entertainment, Spanish for Adults 0 comments

10 Best Spanish Telenovelas on Netflix to Binge Watch Right Now!

Are you like me and love your daily dose of colorful drama? What about binge watching telenovelas on Netflix? Well, we’re going to get along just fine—and I have some spectacularly dramatic TV shows to share with you. As you know, TV offers us a wide range of programs to entertain ourselves every day, but here’s my secret: I believe telenovelas (soap operas) are the best ones! What’s better than watching a scandalous story unfold after a long day?

If you ask me, I’d say absolutely nothing!

Join me in my endeavor to open your world to ten of the best telenovelas on Netflix that will give you and your friends something to gossip wildly about.

Let’s check them out!

Telenovelas on Netflix

1. Betty la fea [7+] (Ugly Betty)

Official trailer: YouTube

This telenovela is a total classic. It’s set and filmed in Colombia, so you’ll be immersed in the Colombian accent.

The story revolves around Betty, a young and brilliant economist who lives with her parents in Bogotá. She’s characterized by not being attractive at all—hence why they call her la fea. And after many difficulties in finding a job, she finally begins to work as a secretary of the presidency in a company called Ecomoda.

This inspiring telenovela on Neflix carries you along an emotional rollercoaster that endears you to Betty as you watch her go from clumsy and hateable, to opening up and achieving her dreams.

Director: Mario Ribero

Cast: Ana María Orozco, Jorge Enrique Abello, Natalia Ramírez, Lorna Paz, Luis Mesa

Seasons: 1 season, 335 episodes

2. Pasión de gavilanes [13+] (Hidden Passion)

Official trailer: YouTube

This amazing Colombian telenovela combines drama, comedy, romance, jealousy, and revenge.

It’s about three brothers—the Reyes Guerrero—who seek to avenge the death of a loved one. However, in full search for revenge, the three brothers end up starring in all kinds of love and heartbreak stories with the Elizondo sisters, whose dad’s mistress is the Reyes Guerrero’s young sister, and for what’s worth, is pregnant with his child.

If you like a little bit of everything in the same show, this is a must watch! Plus, the season finale of this telenovela on Netflix was seen live by over 37 million spectators, which means it was a total success.

Director: Rodrigo Triana, Mauricio Cruz, Ricardo Suárez

Cast: Danna García, Mario Cimarro, Paola Rey, Jorge Cao, Gloria Gómez, María Giraldo

Seasons: 1 season, 188 episodes

3. La reina del flow [13+] (The Queen of Flow)

Official trailer: YouTube

La reina del flow is arguably one of the best musical telenovelas on Netflix. It introduces us to Yeimi, a street artist and singer who was unjustly thrown in jail because of her ex-boyfriend.

The show places us 17 years later, when Yeimi is released from prison and is obsessed with getting revenge on her former partner Charly. He’s undeniably guilty for what had happened to her, but it didn’t stop him from pursuing his music career and becoming a popular singer.

This Colombian telenovela is perfect for you if you like music, drama, revenge, and, of course, love!

Director: Rodrigo Lalinde, Liliana Bocanegra

Cast: Carolina Ramírez, Carlos Torres, Andrés Sandoval, Adriana Arangi

Seasons: 1 season, 82 episodes

4. Amar y vivir [13+] (All for Love)

Official trailer: YouTube

Amar y vivir is one of the more recent telenovelas on Netflix—an emotional and romantic series, it’s all you need if you’re tired of action thrillers, drugs, and revenge.

It’s about a young woman who dreams of being a singer but works at the fruit stand with her mother. Suddenly, a young peasant appears: a man who has returned home from military service and is looking for his missing sister.

The two characters meet, and they prove to us in this Colombian telenovela that love is always present and can turn around your luck when you least expect it.

Director: Liliana Bocanegra, Santiago Vargas

Cast: Ana María Estupiñán, Carlos Torres, Yuri Vargas, Jim Muñoz, Julio Sánches Cóccaro

Seasons: 1 season, 69 episodes

5. Las muñecas de la mafia [16+] (The Mafia Dolls)

Official trailer: YouTube

This is another Colombian telenovela on Netflix, whose source of drama comes from the inherent danger of drug trafficking.

Five women end up, for different reasons in their lives, connected to the world of the Colombian mafia and drugs. Women who were once strangers are joined by a new life of power, drug trafficking, and extravagance—but also by love, hate, and deadly ambitions.

This telenovela will hook you, just like it did to most Colombians some years ago, where it was one of the highest rated shows in the country.

Director: Luis Alberto Restrepo

Cast: Amparo Grisales, Carla Giraldo, Paola Rey, Caterin Escobar, Paula Barreto, Fernando Solórzano

Seasons: 2 seasons, 55+ episodes each

6. La doña [16+]

Official trailer: YouTube

One of the best telenovelas on Netflix and one of the most popular in the last few years, La doña has received many awards.

It introduces us to Altagracia, a successful woman who owns a huge construction company. This woman suffered during her youth and has now become a powerful woman capable of everything.

This Mexican telenovela narrates a story full of love, revenge, ambition, and fight for justice.

Director: Carlos Villegas

Cast: Aracely Arámbula, David Chocarro, Danna Paola, Rebecca Jones, Odiseo Bichir

Seasons: 1 season, 120 episodes

7. El señor de los cielos [16+] (Lord of the Skies)

Official trailer: YouTube

This telenovela in Spanish is based on the life of Armando Carrillo Fuentes, a drug trafficker who became the head of the Juarez Cartel in the 1990s.

He was called el señor de los cielos (lord of the skies) because of the large fleet of planes he used to transport illegal substances. Described as the most powerful criminal of his time, Armando was the ruthless leader who occupied the place left by the drug trafficker Pablo Escobar. This Mexican telenovela tells the harrowing story of how he became the largest trafficker in the country, while fraught with obstacles, in a whirlwind of emotions.

As to be expected, the telenovela is loaded with action, luxuries, intrigues, and lethal betrayals.

Director: Miguel Varoni

Cast: Matías Novoa, Carmen Aub, Iván Arana, Isabella Castillo, Robinson Días

Seasons: 7 seasons

8. Rosario tijeras [16+]

Official trailer: YouTube

This Mexican telenovela narrates the story of Rosario, a young student who is forced to enter a world full of violence, bosses, and criminals in order to take revenge on those who hurt her in the past. Watch as she tries to balance vengeance and protecting the ones she loves.

It’s a telenovela full of action, drama, and retaliation. It’s ideal for you if you like to add some spice to your day.

Director: Salvador Cartas, Alejandro Lozano, Bonnie Cartas, Rolando Ocampo

Cast: Bárbara de Regil, Sebastían Martínez, Juan Pablo Campa, Verónica Langer

Seasons: 3 seasons

9. Dueños del paraíso [16+] (Owners of Paradise)

Official trailer: YouTube

The famous Mexican actress Kate del Castillo plays the main character Anastasia Cardona in this telenovela on Netflix.

The story romanticizes the idea of women using drug trafficking to rise to power (as opposed to the typical male-oriented story). Anastasia takes advantage of her husband’s businesses to gain power and money, while using drug trafficking to climb to the top. She lives a life full of wealth and endless luxury.

This Mexican telenovela is what you’re looking for if you like police themes, action, and romance.

Director: Lilo Vilaplana, Nicolás Diblasi

Cast: Kate del Castillo, Jorge Zabaleta, José María Torre, Tony Dalton

Seasons: 1 season, 71 episodes

10. Ingobernable [16+]

Official trailer: YouTube

Once again, gorgeous Kate del Castillo surprises us with her acting talents in this telenovela. This suspenseful Mexican production is world’s away from the classic stories of unrequited love.

This political telenovela follows a Mexican woman who seeks to divorce her husband, the country’s president. After failing to reach an agreement, the two start a physical fight in their penthouse, resulting in the president’s fatal fall from the balcony. Afraid of being persecuted for an accident deemed “murder,”, she runs away. She must hide from the nation-wide manhunt for her as well as the investigation that may reveal a mysterious element of her culpability.

You want to watch this telenovela on Netflix if you’re a fan of suspense, mystery, action, and—lest we forget—love.

Director: Epigmenio Ibarra

Cast: Kate del Castillo, Eréndira Ibarra, Alberto Guerra, Erik Hayser

Seasons: 2 seasons, 27 episodes in total

Watch it!

Now that we’ve seen some of the best telenovelas on Netflix, stop what you’re doing and go check them out! Did I leave out your favorite telenovela in my list? Let me know in the comments!

Want more curated lists of exciting Spanish entertainment? Check out these posts!

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Mariana Gómez

Freelance writer at Homeschool Spanish Academy

Industrial Psychology Student in Guatemala, lover of cultures, family, love and new experiences. Writing is the way I connect with the world and myself. My goal is to make of this world a better place, so I constantly get out of my comfort zone to achieve that. I strongly believe that “we ourselves feel that what we are doing is just a drop in the ocean. But the ocean would be less because of that missing drop”.

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