Three Actors Play Bolívar Across His Life in Caracol’s Ambitious Drama

Caracol TV’s Bolívar wants to strip the hero off his pedestal and put the man back on it. That ambition earns the series a 7.6 out of 10.

Three Bolívares, One Story

The series follows Simón Bolívar across three stages of his life, each played by a different actor. José Ramón Barreto plays the young Bolívar, Luis Gerónimo Abreu takes over as the adult liberator, and Maximiliano Gómez plays him as a child. The show spans 60 episodes documenting Bolívar’s life from age seven until his death, focusing on his rise as liberator of several South American countries and his romantic entanglements.

The format is telenovela-style, which is exactly the problem for international viewers. The soap opera pace and melodrama that work in Latin America do not translate well elsewhere. But within that framework, the show attempts something honest: removing the heroic veil to humanize Bolívar.

Playing Bolívar Down to Size

Abreu describes the approach directly. He told BBC Mundo that the show “intersperses the story of the young and orphaned Bolívar and the angry, idealistic and passionate Bolívar.” He explained that the creative team wanted to humanize him “with his defects and his mistakes, […] Because Bolívar was not a bronze superhero like the statues, but a human being, rather small and modest, who without superpowers became a superhero of flesh and blood.”

Barreto agrees. He says playing the hero he grew up with is an honor, but he hopes the series allows people to question Bolívar’s life and “question for themselves the cult that has been given to ‘the military, the boots, the leaders.'”

The effort shows in the acting. Barreto’s young Bolívar is a boy trying to find his footing after losing both parents. Abreu’s adult Bolívar carries the weight of war, politics, and love affairs without losing the fire that drove him.

A Cast Built for Scale

The production is massive. About 400 actors appear across the series, with 6,000 extras. The show’s popularity in Latin America was real, even as its telenovela style kept it from reaching a wider international audience.

The show’s creators and cast also faced direct criticism from Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro before its release. Commentators believed Maduro was worried that a less legendary image of Bolívar would further reduce his popular support.

The series does not fully escape its genre. The melodrama can feel overstated, and some viewers will find the sheer scale overwhelming rather than immersive. But the core intent is clear and mostly carried through.

What Works Best

1. The casting of three actors across Bolívar’s life stages gives the story a natural rhythm.
2. Abreu’s performance grounds the adult Bolívar in human weakness.
3. Barreto’s portrayal of the young Bolívar captures the orphan’s determination.
4. The production’s scale — 400 actors and 6,000 extras — suggests ambition.

What doesn’t quite land is the telenovela formula itself, which limits its appeal beyond Latin America.

Bolívar is a sincere attempt to humanize a national icon, and it mostly succeeds.

Bolívar · Latin America · telenovela · TV Review · Venezuela