The Real Reason Pedro Pascal Left Netflix's Narcos
Netflix's "Narcos: Mexico" Season 1 effectively serves as Season 4 of "Narcos." The latter show takes place in Colombia, and a change of venue to Mexico is what officially separates the two series. However, some characters, like Alberto Ammann's Pacho Herrera, are prominent in both projects. That said, while Pedro Pascal is a key part of the main cast of "Narcos" as DEA agent Javier Peña, he's absent entirely from "Narcos: Mexico."
As it turns out, Pascal's departure was a creative choice made by the writing staff rather than a decision the actor made for career or personal reasons. Producer Eric Newman explained the genesis of this development in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter around the time "Narcos: Mexico" was set to premiere on Netflix. "It was a part of the plan as early as Season 2," Newman said. "The design was always to finish out the Colombian story and the players that we've come to know there, and then start anew in Mexico."
So, while it theoretically might have been possible to integrate Peña into the plot of "Narcos: Mexico," Pascal leaving served the larger purpose of establishing something of a clean slate for the beginning of the sequel series.
Pedro Pascal seemed to know about his exit in advance
"Narcos" producer Eric Newman went on to tell THR that Pedro Pascal knew he was leaving the cast around the time that the end of his character's arc was determined behind the scenes of Season 2. "Although, he alternated between asking us to kill off his character at one point and then wondering, 'Hey, maybe he can come back,'" Newman said. "I'd like to think that he still hasn't made up his mind about whether he wants to come back."
This characterization sort of contradicts an interview with Pascal that Entertainment Weekly published around three months earlier. "You don't know. It's in their hands. I have no control over it, so I don't ask questions," he said in response to a question about whether or not he would return in "Narcos: Mexico." However, since he avoided discussing his character's fate explicitly, Pascal most likely did know about his character's departure but had to hide it from interviewers at that time.
Season 3 of "Narcos: Mexico" is the series' last, so barring any surprise plans for another sequel, the "Narcos" chapter of Pascal's career is closed for good — and has been since his departure in 2017.