Cocaine Cowboys: The Kings of Miami’ Delves Deep Into the Excess of 80’s Drug Culture

As a kid who grew up in Miami, the stories of its cocaine war-past stick to the humid air like gum. The times and sordid tales were well documented in the 2006 film Cocaine Cowboys, directed by Miami-native Billy Corben. The documentary took viewers through the Miami drug trade of the 1980’s and became a cult classic and a foundational reference point for all the narco content that came after.

The original doc led to two sequels (2008’s Cocaine Cowboys 2 and 2014’s Cocaine Cowboys: Reloaded) that dug deeper into the war stories of law enforcement, lawyers, journalists, smugglers and assassins. Now Corben and his producing partner Alfred Spellman have returned for a new six-part docuseries on Netflix: Cocaine Cowboys: The Kings of Miami.

This installment to the series focuses on Willy Falcon and Sal Magluta, or “Los Muchachos,” as the billionaire Cubans came to be known. They were dominant but unassuming figures in the Miami drug trade accused of importing 75 tons of cocaine into Miami.

They didn’t have the violent reputation of someone like Griselda Blanco, who was featured prominently in the Cocaine Cowboys trilogy. Instead, Falcon and Magluta largely kept off law enforcement’s radar until they were arrested in 1991. But that wasn’t the end of their story. They continuously evaded convictions and sentencing for at least a decade because of how much influence they exerted over Miami’s business, political and legal institutions.

Falcon and Magluta were also a curious structuring absence in the original Cocaine Cowboys, leaving audiences from Miami who were familiar with the headlines at the time wondering why their story wasn’t being told. It wasn’t for lack of trying. But now they get their due.

Check out the trailer below: