Pedro Pascal Explains Real Javier Pena’s Role In Cali Cartel’s Takedown And Differences In ‘Narcos’ Season 3

In Season 3 of Narcos, Pedro Pascal’s Javier Pena returns to Colombia after the Cali Cartel takes over the drug trafficking market. Boyd Holbrook, who played Steve Murphy in the first two seasons, did not return for the third. The real DEA agent Steve Murphy did not return to Colombia after Escobar but neither did Javier Pena. So why is he in the series taking down the Cali Cartel? And what role did the real Javier Pena play?

Narcos Season 3 spoilers ahead.

In Narcos Season 3, Pedro Pascal’s Javier Pena plays a mixture of other real-life individuals who operated in the DEA operation to take down the Cali Cartel in Colombia. Pascal explained to Entertainment Weekly that Pena left Colombia six months after Pablo Escobar died. However, he remained in the DEA and acted as a consultant on the Cali Cartel operation.

The scene in Narcos Season 3 where Javier Pena goes on record to expose Cali as a “narco-democracy” really happened. However, the real-life character that went on record was DEA agent Joe Toft, who went on to reveal that the Cali Cartel effectively bought the Colombian presidency with campaign donations.

President Ernesto Samper vehemently denied the accusations, according to the Washington Post. Many prominent Colombians, such as the then U.S Ambassador Myles Frechette, Nobel laureate Gabriel Garcia Marquez, and the former head of the Colombian secret police joined Samper in leaping criticism on Toft for his statement.

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Joe Toft insisted beyond doubt that Samper’s campaign accepted donations from the Cali Cartel.

The real Chris Feistl also revealed some details about the Cali Cartel’s operation in Colombia. Former DEA agent Feistl told the Hollywood Reporter that the DEA discovered that part of the police worked for the Cali Cartel, as shown in Narcos, and they found proof.

Clever. Discrete. Deadly. #Narcos pic.twitter.com/R87O62KRAz

— Narcos (@NarcosNetflix) September 5, 2017

Signs point to Narcos Season 4 heading to Mexico, and Pedro Pascal is not sure he will be returning as Javier Pena. The final scene on Narcos leaves his character’s return up in the air as Pena ponders with his father going with the DEA to Mexico.

Would you like to see Javier Pena in Narcos Season 4?

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[Featured Image by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images]