‘Narcos’ Season 2 To Deal With Pablo Escobar’s Death; Showrunner Woes Hound Series’ Production

by Jen Mendoza / Jan 25, 2016 06:57 PM EST

(L-R) Executive producer Jose Padilha, actors Wagner Moura, Pedro Pascal and executive producer Eric Newman at the Netflix portion of the 2015 Summer TCA Tour on July 28, 2015. (Photo by Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)

"Narcos" season 2 will deal with the inevitable: the death of Pablo Escobar.

This was confirmed by series showrunner Eric Newman during a roundtable with reporters organized by Netflix, according to Slash Film.

"He will die," Newman said. "The design of the show is we told 15 years of history in season one."

In as much as he wanted to keep Escobar alive and Wagner Moura on the show, the executive producer lamented that "that's not something we can change."

"To stretch that out beyond another season would be disingenuous of us," Newman explained. "That story was always designed to have an ending."

The story arc of "Narcos" season 2, however, will not be affected with the expected demise of Escobar, which is based on real life events.

"There are any number of things that can happen after," Newman continued. "We have not committed to one or the other."

"To tell you the truth, most of my thinking is about season two because we're in the middle of it and I haven't thought that much about where do we go from here," he added.

Newman said that the first season "was a lot of information" that was meant to set up the show.

"Narcos" season 2, on the other hand, will revolve around Escobar's world and its interesting cast of characters.

"So I would say that season two is more character driven," the showrunner stated. "Less voiceover I hope."

Despite the reported shakeup that has occurred within the show's production crew, Newman disclosed that he and Jose Padilha still call the shots.

"Really José and I have still maintained control of the show," he said, adding that Chris Brancato "was a great writing partner who did what we had hoped he would do, which was helped focus us."

According to the Vine Report, Brancato, who went on board halfway through the production of "Narcos" season 1, left the show in April of last year to join ABC studios.

But despite his departure from the series, Brancato, together with Carlo Bernard, and Doug Miro, were still credited as co-creators of the critically-acclaimed series.

It still remains a puzzle why "Narcos" is experiencing personnel problems despite its growing fan base and having received two nominations at the Golden Globe awards this year.

"Narcos" season 2 is expected to premiere in August 2016, revealed the Digital Times.