Netflix's latest steamy sensation, a Brazilian film called Burning Betrayal, is making 50 Shades of Grey look mild.
The movie, featuring a stunning motorcycle-riding femme fatale named Babi and a 'hot judge' called Marco, has been described as "80% sex" by some viewers. It's so spicy that it's made Netflix's global non-English top ten for three weeks running.
The film's leading lady, Giovanna Lancellotti, spoke about her transition from soap star to Netflix's newest sex symbol. "For me, it's a movie of first times: it's the first time I've played someone like Babi, it's the first time I've played so many sex scenes and it's the first time I've worked with an intimacy coordinator on set," the 30-year-old actress from Sao Paulo shared.
Giovanna, a sensation in her home country with nearly 12 million Instagram followers and famous pals like footballer Neymar and pop star Joe Jonas, started as a soap actress before securing jobs with Netflix. She featured in Brazilian hits such as 2011's Irrational Heart, 2016's Rising Sun and 2018's A Second Chance.
In 2020, she landed a Netflix deal. "It's very different working on a Brazilian soap opera and on a movie set," Giovanna shared with Daily Star. "First of all, on a soap opera, we work on the same project, playing the same character for almost a year. But on a movie, we will be with that character for some months, maybe three or four, the screenplay is finished, which means we know the arc from the beginning."
Before Burning Betrayal, the award-winning actress starred in the romantic comedy movie Rich in Love, followed by TV series Summer Heat about a group of young adults at a utopian resort. Now, Giovanna and Netflix have a long partnership, and "it's going great", she said.
Burning Betrayal's raunchy script and numerous intimate scenes presented new challenges, which the actress said she enjoyed. "It was a completely new experience for me for sure. I'd never done anything like that in almost 14 years of my career. The first time I read the screenplay, I wondered how it could be."
Giovanna, who plays the character Babi, explained that her character's promiscuity isn't just about raw sexuality, but also her vulnerability. "She is free: to cry, to love, to be vulnerable, to experience her sexuality, most of all, to live as she wishes," she expressed.
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