Walter Salles’s First Project Since the Oscar Is a Soccer Series

BRAZIL · CULTURE

Walter Salles, the first Brazilian director to win an Oscar, will follow it with a documentary series about Socrates, the soccer star and democracy activist, set to stream on Globoplay.

What Walter Salles Is Making Next

The project is “Socrates Brasileiro,” a four-part documentary series. It is Salles’s first work since “I’m Still Here” won the Oscar for best international feature, Brazil’s first. The series was confirmed in a slate unveiled by the streaming service Globoplay.

A premiere is planned for September. Salles co-produces through his company VideoFilmes, alongside Anonymous Content Brazil. The same slate included a documentary on the Voepass plane crash and a series on the singer Preta Gil.

Who Socrates Was

Socrates was one of Brazil’s most beloved athletes, the captain of the celebrated 1982 World Cup team and a star at the club Corinthians. He was also a qualified doctor, which earned him the nickname “the Doctor.” He died in 2011.

He is remembered as much for politics as for play. In the 1980s he led a movement that pushed for democracy inside his club during military rule. Salles has described the series as a story about how sport became a vehicle for political change.

Part of a Bigger Bet on Documentaries

The announcement signals a deeper push into nonfiction by Globoplay. The platform paired the Socrates series with the Voepass and Preta Gil projects and flagged a tie-up with the BBC. For Salles, it is a return to documentary after his feature triumph.

The timing matters for Brazil’s film industry. The Oscar win lifted global interest in its storytelling, and a high-profile follow-up keeps that spotlight. The series also leans on themes Salles knows well, memory and resistance under dictatorship.

Frequently Asked Questions

When does the series come out?

A premiere is planned for September on Globoplay. It will run as a four-part documentary series.

Why is Socrates a notable subject?

He was a star footballer and trained doctor who used his fame to campaign for democracy during military rule. That mix of sport and politics is the heart of the series.

What did Walter Salles win the Oscar for?

His film “I’m Still Here” won best international feature, the first Oscar in that category for Brazil. It told the story of a family torn apart under the dictatorship.

Connected Coverage

For more on Brazil’s cultural scene, see The Rio Times on Sao Paulo’s Virada Cultural festival and on the 2026 Brazilian music awards.