“Brazilian ‘Succession'” Drama Series In The Works From ‘Nothing To Lose’ Director Alexandre Avancini

Jesse Whittock
·3-min read

EXCLUSIVE: An international drama series billed as the “Brazilian Succession” is being developed, with Nothing to Lose director Alexandre Avancini attached.

Diosual Television Studios, the TV arm of Diosual Entertainment, has created Whose Money Is It?, with telenovela writer Solange Castro Neves writing in collaboration with Thalma Bertozzi.

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The series is an adaptation of the Brazilian non-fiction book ‘Whose Money Is It? Fear, Luck and Bad Luck: Victories and Stumbles in the Stock Market’ (‘De Quem é o Dinheiro? Ganância, Medo, Azar e Sorte: Vitórias e Tropeços na Bolsa’) by Adley Piovesan and Homero Chemale.

The plan is for a three-season series, with Diosual seeking co-production and co-investment partners, with two international streamers understood to have been close to closing deals.

The plot is billed as a “a family drama with elements of action and investigation,” taking place in the financial markets of the present day with flashbacks from three decades ago. It centers on the Salvatore Abud family, whose billionaire patriarch, Ítalo, is the owner of one of the largest brokerages in Brazil.

Logline reads: “A wealthy banker loses his only son in a tragic plane crash. He becomes the educational guardian of his two grandchildren, who he raises under strict rules. His intention is to insert the boy into the business world, but it is his granddaughter who lives up to his expectations, becoming the She-Wolf of the stock market.

“The constant quarrels between him and his daughter-in-law only end when she comes to suffer a terrible, mysterious criminal assault. The millionaire’s world is shattered when he discovers that his mistress was behind the kidnapping of the mother of his grandchildren and responsible for the death of his son. In light of his emotional turmoil, his heirs take over the family business, changing the course of the country’s financial history.”

Director Avancini’s credits include The Ten Commandments and Nothing to Lose, both of which are among Brazil’s biggest ever box office hits. He directed sequel Nothing to Lose 2 and also worked for the Rede Globo network for 23 years.

“I am excited about this series as it will be the first to portray the financial market in Brazil,” he said in a statement to Deadline. “When [Diosual CEO] Guto Colunga invited me to direct, I was completely fascinated by this story. I saw that it was exactly a Brazilian Succession, being a family drama with all possible ingredients. Of course, there are many real elements, but we also use artistic freedom. Solange and Thalma knew exactly how to adapt a series that I not only believe will catch the attention of the Brazilian audience and critics but also internationally. I can’t wait to start filming.”

Colunga added: “This story has as its backdrop the financial system and its characters, who often become dangerous instruments, generating opportunities for rapid wealth. It reveals that those harmed along the way are often victims of their own boundless greed or lack of technical knowledge, leaving the viewer with the sweet uncertainty of whether the story is real or simply fiction.”

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