‘Facing El Chapo’: What’s the true story behind the action film?

Crime thrillers remain Netflix’s bread and butter, in many ways. The streamer not only has hundreds of popular licensed titles in the genre, but it also continues to release original movies and shows at a regular cadence. Netflix just recently released the “Man on Fire TV” show, for example, and movies “like Havoc” (2025) and “Rebel Ridge” (2024) provided plenty of thrills for audiences. This year, the streamer has had success with crime thrillers like “The Rip” (2026) and “Colors of Evil: Black” (2026), but now another title in the genre is making a splash.

Marking Netflix’s latest addition to its original crime thriller offerings, “Facing El Chapo” has become a major success with audiences. As of writing, the crime thriller ranks as the number one most popular movie on Netflix worldwide. Clocking in at a brisk 91 minutes, the film, which hails from director Chava Cartas, is based on a true story and is evidently resonating with viewers.

Starring Alfonso Herrera, Noé Hernández, and Hector Kotsifakis, “Facing El Chapo” tells the story of two police officers who pull over a stolen vehicle only to find that it’s occupied by one of the world’s most dangerous criminals. The film was released on Netflix on 21 August meaning it climbed the charts remarkably quickly.

“Facing El Chapo” is based on real events, chronicling the recapture of infamous drug lord Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán in 2016. The crime lord’s recapture followed his escape from prison in summer 2015, and the ordeal was the subject of many news headlines at the time. The Mexican criminal’s life was also previously dramatised in Netflix’s “El Chapo”, a crime drama that ran for three seasons starting in 2017.

The familiarity with the true “El Chapo” story is undoubtedly part of the reason why “Facing El Chapo” has become such a major success so quickly. For many, the moniker is instantly familiar, and this could be enough to get them to click on the film’s title on Netflix.

Plus, those who watched the “El Chapo” series nearly 10 years ago may also be more interested in revisiting the notorious figure from the eyes of a new filmmaker. While the series chronicled El Chapo’s life and origins, this film focuses on one very specific--and intense--period of time in his life, and the two could make for interesting companion pieces. It remains to be seen whether “Facing El Chapo” will continue its viewership success in the weeks to come, but it's evidently off to a blazing start.