Mourinho in New Netflix Documentary: Ego, Charisma
Director Joe Pearlman reveals how he filmed one of the most controversial coaches in football history and what lies behind his mask.
Director Joe Pearlman reveals how he filmed one of the most controversial coaches in football history and what lies behind his mask.
The new three-part Netflix series about José Mourinho offers an intimate look into the life of one of the most controversial and charismatic coaches in football history. The series' director, Joe Pearlman, shared behind-the-scenes details with Guardian Sport, describing Mourinho as someone who has always sought to become the greatest possible version of himself, and football provided him with that opportunity.
Pearlman admitted he knew the interviews would be intense and that Mourinho would try to control the narrative and manipulate them. "Everything bad is everyone else's fault, and everything he has done is justified by victories. Because that's all that matters," the director said, describing Mourinho's worldview. In the third episode, Mourinho didn't want to talk about his childhood, believing it wasn't relevant to who he is today, which surprised Pearlman given his status as one of the greatest motivators in sports history.
A particularly emotional moment in the series is the conversation about the death of Mourinho's father, Félix, who passed away in June 2017. Pearlman believes Mourinho has never fully processed that loss. "I think José has never tried to understand what any part of his life means. I think he's always looking forward, always looking for the next thing," Pearlman said, adding that the loss of his father changed Mourinho and marked the years that followed.
"On top of all that, José carries every word, every goal, every decision that goes against him; it's a backpack of pain he's been dragging along since he was 19 or 20."
Pearlman believes Mourinho found in football the stage for the role he had always dreamed of. "Ego and charisma, along with talent, allowed him to embody a character he always dreamed of being, perhaps what he wasn't in childhood, and that's the person we came to know as José Mourinho," the director explained. That character, he says, thrives especially in conflict, which serves as a "security blanket" giving him the feeling he's fighting for a just cause.
In the series, Mourinho shows no remorse for some of his most controversial actions, such as those involving referee Anders Frisk and doctor Eva Carneiro. The documentary also shows the other side of the coin: at home, Mourinho is more reserved and quiet, and one of the sadder moments is his admission that he was so often absent from his family that it's easier for them when he's not around.
The series, which was filmed during Mourinho's years at Roma and Benfica, received an unexpected happy ending with his return to Madrid. Pearlman noted that until now, he couldn't say he had met a happy or content man, but now it's different. "He's now where he believes he always should have been," the director said, revealing that Real Madrid president Florentino Pérez, after every trophy won since Mourinho's departure, would call the former coach and tell him, "This is because of you," referring to the modernization of the club.
Mourinho himself confirmed his feelings via social media, stating that he feels at home in Madrid. Pearlman concludes that the series is about winning at all costs and what happens when you're defined by victories and they stop coming. Despite everything, he believes the world was lucky that Mourinho didn't turn to politics, and whatever comes next for him will be, as he puts it, a "box-office blockbuster."
