The idea germinated two and a half years ago in the modest Parisian office of Nova Production. Its five journalists had the idea of a documentary on Matteo Messina Denaro, the last godfather of Cosa Nostra, the Sicilian mafia. The result hit Netflix on August 5 and comes with four other components. "World's Most Wanted" is among the top 10 most watched series in the United States and Canada. She even climbed into the top 5 for ten days.
This French series with independent episodes tells about the hunt for five criminals still wanted in the world. Semion Mogilevich, a Russian mafia boss, of Ukrainian origin, Samantha Lewthwaite, English convert wanted for Islamist attacks in Africa, Matteo Messina Denaro, last great Sicilian godfather, Ismaël Zambada, head of the Sinaloa cartel in Mexico and Félicien Kabuga, considered the financier of the Rwandan genocide. This episode ends with the arrest (the only one in the series) of the latter in the Paris suburbs, in May.
The success of the program varies across continents. In Latin America, the section devoted to the Mexican drug cartel is naturally popular. "World's Most Wanted" shows excellent results in Africa, with episodes on the Rwandan genocide and Samantha Lewthwaite, the white widow, suspected of terrorist acts in Kenya.
Two hours were enough to convince Netflix
"We wanted to investigate the biggest criminals wanted across the world, we aimed at the big level, on different continents, excluding serial killers," says Thomas Zribi, of Nova. This journalist, at the origin of the series and author of an episode, is “impressed” by this worldwide release. Nova is used to working for French channels. None was seduced by the theme of "big criminals". The production company therefore sent the project to Diego Bunuel, then boss of Netflix documentaries in Great Britain (who became director of programs for France Télévisions in June). “Two hours later, he called me back to give me his consent, it's incredible,” Thomas Zribi still remembers.
Netflix has asked Nova to partner with a production company with wider shoulders. Nova has chosen as its First Lines partner (“Cash Investigation” on France 2, Vert de rage on France 5…), one of whose bosses, journalist Paul Moreira, has also directed the first episode devoted to “Ismael Zambada Garcia, the ghost ”.
Once associated, the two French companies obtained comfortable financing from the American platform. “Five times what French channels usually release for an investigative document,” compares Thomas Zribi. The budget allowed us to go to several countries in Africa to trace the route of the White Widow, to pay for numerous archives. Since the rights for Netflix are international and lifetime, they can cost up to ten times as much. "
A second season already under study
The giant does not release ingots with no return. It demands quality on all fronts: soundtrack, editing, graphics. And the result is impressive. In addition to the quality of the investigations and the testimonies collected, the narration of the series is worthy of a thriller. The hunt is told in the American style, without commentary, by delivering the information drip to maintain the suspense. Thus in the last episode "Matteo Messina Denaro, the last godfather", a repentant tells of the kidnapping of his 12-year-old son, in 1993, by the mafia who wants to impose silence on him. We listen to the boy's ordeal, his abuse, his “779 days in hell”, as Santino Di Matteo recounts, determined to cooperate with the police. And the outcome, fatal. We are amazed by this father who does not shed a tear, just waiting for Messina Denaro to end up "in prison and throw the key".
Documentaries make the trackers (the police), the victims and the perpetrators talk. In the Rwandan genocide (episode 2), Thomas Zribi questions in prison a host of the Mille Collines radio station who encouraged the massacre of the Tutsis in the summer of 1993. "This incomprehensible and animal absolute madness made me have nightmares" , confides the director.
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Driven by this success, Nova Production is already thinking about a second season, still focused on criminals on the run across the world. The small company did not take the melon so far. She remains at five employees and continues to work mainly for the French channels.
EDITOR'S RATING: 4/5
“World's Most Wanted”, documentary series in five episodes written by Thomas Zribi and directed by Jérôme Fritel. On Netflix.