9 Soap Characters That Were Inspired By Real People

There are many wonderful fictional Brazilian characters, whether on television or in movies, with whom we connect to the point where we think we know them in real life, as if they were our best friends. Therein lies the beauty of the fictional world — some are so well constructed they seem real. But the truth is, sometimes these fictional characters are actually based on real people — from the most inspiring, fun, to the terrifying. And these real people have interesting stories to tell.

Therefore, we, from awesome.club, we selected 9 fictional Brazilian characters that were inspired by real people — and you probably didn’t know — and told a little bit of their story. Check the list below.

Nazaré (Renata Sorrah), from the soap opera Senhora do Destino, is one of the most remembered villains by the Brazilian public. In the soap opera, the antagonist kidnapped Lindalva (Carolina Dieckmann) daughter of the immigrant Maria do Carmo (Suzana Vieira) and raised her as if she were her legitimate daughter. The story was inspired by the case of Vilma Martins Costa, who registered the newborn Pedro Rosalino Braule Pinto and raised him as her legitimate son.

Businesswoman Cleusa Maria is the real Dona do Pedaço. Yes, Walcyr Carrasco was inspired by the life of the owner of one of the most famous bakeries in Brazil to write the story of Maria da Paz. The two worked as a maid and, with great humility, managed to change their lives and achieve success.

The man who inspired the character of Commander José Alfredo, played by Alexandre Nero, was the Portuguese businessman José Berardo. The two built great fortunes, but while José Alfredo worked with the extraction of diamonds, the Portuguese commander worked with the export of gold. Both in real life and in fiction, both have a preference for black clothing.

Actress Carol Duarte broke some social standards when playing Ivana, a male transsexual in the process of changing gender, in the soap opera A Força do Querer. Gloria Perez was inspired by the story of model and actor from Minas Gerais Tarso Brant, formerly known as Tereza Brant, to build the character of Ivana.

Tarso even participated in the soap opera with the mission of helping Ivana discover herself as a transgender man. But there are some differences between the novel and real life. While Tarso Brant lived in Patos de Minas, which is inland, in the plot, Ivana lives in the city.

Originally, Aguinaldo Silva wanted Viviane Araújo to play a role whose story was similar to her real life, but in the end, the character was left to Cris Vianna. Like Viviane Araújo, Juju Popular also gets involved with a famous man and ends up marrying him.

Ritinha’s character is a tribute to women who practice “mermaidism”, and it was the real-life mermaid, Mirella Ferraz, who helped Gloria Perez to better understand this world. In addition, Mirella also helped actress Isis Valverde prepare for the role, teaching scuba diving, apnea, acrobatics and how to use the mermaid tail, made of silicone.

Caio Castro portrayed the first emperor of Brazil in the novel Novo Mundo. The actor managed to be faithful to the supposed charismatic profile of the emperor, praising his popularity among the people. He went on to say that he created a “special and inexplicable” connection with the role. “It was almost as if I had an ancestral permission to give life to this Dom Pedro”, said the artist. And let’s face it, they look a lot alike.

It seems that Juliana Paes really has a gift for playing characters inspired by real people. The actress gave life to Bibi Perigosa, in the soap opera A Força do Querer, a character created by Gloria Perez and inspired by the story of Fabiana Escobar. The “real-life” Bibi Dangerous had a positive response about the character.

“I watch and see myself. People who know me call and say they can’t even see Juliana Paes there, by the way, by the way she reacts. Her intensity looks a lot like me”, said Fabiana at the time the soap opera was on the air.

The combination of some of the biggest gossips in the television and print media, such as Leão Lobo and Leo Dias, resulted in the origin of the character Téo Pereira, played by Paulo Betti, in the soap opera Império.

Do you also have an amazing life story or know someone who would make a fantastic character on TV or in a movie? Share with us in the comments.