“There’s just a different appetite,” Ramirez said. “People are not as afraid of subtitles, which is wonderful, and so we are embracing different stories from all around the world and allowing all these other cultures to push their best stories forward in the world of TV.”
Helman agreed that the globalization of the TV business has evolved at a rapid pace over the last decade.
He pointed to how the success of foreign-language titles like Shōgun on Hulu and Disney+ has proven that audiences in both the United States and abroad can appreciate and engage with “beautifully executed” series regardless of a perceived language barrier.
“It’s only natural, given how many Spanish-language speakers there are worldwide, that content catering particularly to that demo would see a proliferation as a result,” Helman said.
Reaching new audiences
To market the series, Hulu partnered with UFC Synergy and ESPN for a celebration on Mexican Independence Day that brought the executive producers and stars of the show to the Noche UFC live 90-minute pre-show event on Sept. 14 in Las Vegas.
As part of the event, García Bernal and Luna participated in an extended live pre-show segment hosted by ESPN’s Mauricio Pedroza to highlight Mexican culture.
Noche UFC also created six vignettes directed by Carlos López Estrada, composed by Germaine Franco, and narrated by García Bernal that were integrated into the event’s presentation and shown on the inside of the Sphere throughout the pay-per-view portion.
The promotion looked to reach broad audiences watching the event in an organic way. Likewise, Helman said he believes one of the core tenets of his job is to accurately reflect and speak directly to the bevy of unique cultures and audiences tuning in on Hulu.
“Our programming strategy has long been one that caters to many different types of audiences, and by ensuring that our slate is populated by an incredibly diverse offering, we have the continual ability to entice new subscribers to the platform while also retaining current subscribers,” Helman said.
