Feb 16, 2026
3 min read
Adaptation of Isabel Allende's novel produced by Prime Video in Chile: "We created an absorbing series, but without hiding the violence against women."
"House of the Spirits" appears serially and in Spanish at the Berlinale: the Latin American classic seduces the platforms.
The first video adaptation of Isabel Allende's novel filmed in Chile: "We made a digestible series, but without hiding violence against women"
When the film version of Isabel Allende's novel "House of Souls" was released in 1993, the critics were merciless. This mix-up is not saved by the two-time Palme d'Or director Billy August, nor by a cast of English-speaking stars (Jeremy Irons, Meryl Streep, Glenn Close, Winona Ryder and Antonio Banderas). "What saddens us even more, however, is that the perspective of a novel with a female lead changesand ends up focusing on the male protagonist".Francesca Alegría and Fernanda Urejola spoke. Next to him, Andres Wood nodded. They are three of the producers of "House of Spirits," a series of Spanish-language novels by Allende, the first three chapters of which Prime Video aired in a special series at the Berlin Film Festival.
The three Chilean filmmakers (Ureyola, also an actress, plays Blanca Trueba) spent four months in 2024 filming their vision of the most famous book by Allende, the series' executive producer.As for whether there are any red lines for starting work, they explain that there are some ground rules for the trilogy: "First, the cast is made up of people we want to work with. Second, I have close stage coordinators, which not only helps the actors feel comfortable, but the actors themselves can even decide during filming how they display their bodies against women. And third,we researched how we made a movie."
Few readers will remember that The House of the Spirits is not only a family saga based on magical realism and a seductive portrait of the acquisition of political and social power in Chile (although it is never named), but also a very violent book, like the half century of South America it describes.awful.We thought about how to make a digestible series without hiding what really happened.So how to show all that violence was a very important starting point, and one that we talked about a lot before we even wrote it."
Alegría and Urezola worked on the project and later added Wood (Machuca, Arana)."Not only us, but the leaders of the party were people from the background," says Wood."In all cases, we worked as American showrunners: when we filmed on location, I had scenes in the episodes that Andres signed and vice versa. And we were all present," said Alegria and Urezola. Stuff." At the time, Wood laughed: "And we're still in post-production on the final chapters." The eight-episode series will premiere on April 29.
In addition to the Chilean cast, there are also Mexican (Estaban Truba played by Alfredo Herrera, a wild male narrative machine), Argentinian (Dolores Fonsi as the adult Clara del Valle) and Spanish (Edward Fernandez, Maribel Verdu, especially Nicole Wallace). Urejola begins: "We also took into account the nationality of the actors. AIt was clear to us that we wanted to make the Latin story.And the novel would not have been successful without Spain.It was crucial that the story be accessible to the world."At the end of his answer he said: "We choose the actors who we think are the best for the role. Like Nicole Wallace, who has extraordinary talent and a perfect interpretation of the role. Or Edward Fernandez, who gives a great and generous performance."
An attack on Latin American literature
In recent years, the platform has explored Ibero-American literature from the boom and subsequent decades: on Netflix they adapted Pedro Páramo and Cen anos de soidade;on HBO, like water for chocolate and swirl, and now on Prime Video The House of the Spirits.Eternauta can also be included here.Urrejola and Alegría affirm: "I think they are born out of respect for the authors, their work and their places. We made small changes to Allende's book, such as telling from the beginning who the narrator is, or connecting characters who do not cross each other on the pages.
And for this reason, the three insist, we must not forget the initial purpose of Isabel Allende's writing: "It is important to remember who wrote the book for. The big clue is who is writing in the novel: Alba. And she does so with a clear commitment towards the women of her family".
"House of Spirits" is of magical truth and it is a great gift of Latin America and world literature." If you want to do it literally in a film, it will not work. But you can translate it. And analyze its characteristics, how it interacts with spirits that often become its writing. Therefore, the first thing is that it must be shown as something common in the environment. It must have an impact every day. They are our relationship with the world, and once we accept its laws, webegins to create it.
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