‘Narcos’ Season 3 Features Rise of Notorious Cali Cartel, Pablo Escobar’s Death Ignites New Tension

‘Narcos’ season 3 will feature the rise of the notorious Cali Cartel following Pablo Escobar’s death in season 2. It will shift its focus to the Cali Cartel’s leader Gilberto Rodriguez Orejuela.

According to News Everyday, season 3 of the American crime web television series airing on Netflix will feature the rise of another powerful Columbian drug cartel known as the Cali Cartel. The Cali Cartel is set to replace the Medellin Cartel’s domination of the international drug trade following its leader Pablo Escobar’s (Wagner Moura) death in the season 2 finale.

Season 1 and 2 focused on Escobar’s rise to power through the production and distribution of cocaine in Columbia as well as his interactions with the government, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and other competing entities such as rival cartels and communist groups. It also featured his personal life with the Escobar family.

The Cali Cartel was based in southern Columbia and founded by the Rodríguez Orejuela brothers, Gilberto and Miguel, as well as Jose Santacruz Londono. They broke away from Escobar’s Medellin Cartel and associates in the 1980s. The American DEA referred to the group as "The most powerful crime syndicate in history."

During a previous interview with Entertainment Weekly, executive Producer Eric Newman confirmed that season 3 will shift its focus on the Cali Cartel. He said, “They’re certainly teed up for that, that’s for sure. This show has always been about cocaine. We purposely did not call the show Pablo Escobar or Medellin. In the same way that Osama Bin Laden begets ISIS, Medellin begets Cali begets the Mexican Cartels. Though they existed at the same time, Cali really got the Mexicans into cocaine, which proved to be a much better business than heroin.”

When asked if the show will make Mexico the primary setting in the incoming season, Newman replied, “You know, it certainly could be. I think that there’s a lot of story left to be told in Colombia, so I think we probably have to. If somebody wants another season of the show, we would sit down and draw from the pretty massive amount of real estate and research that we’ve done and do something kind of cool.”

Damian Alcazar was first introduced as Cali Cartel’s Gilberto Rodriguez Orejuela in season 2. He was also depicted as Escobar’s primary rival in the drug trade.

‘Narcos’ season 3 was renewed by Netflix last September 6, 2016. The series was created by Chris Brancato, Carlo Bernard, and Doug Miro.