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Hey there. How are those New Years’ Resolutions going? Are you exercising three times a week? Have you been reading a book every night before bed? Did you finally start outlining your novel?
Well, Netflix is here to interrupt all of that, with another original film. Airplane Mode is a new Brazilian comedy that debuted on the streaming service this Wednesday, directed by César Rodrigues (Vai que Cola – O Filme, Minha Mãe é uma Peça 2) and is an adaptation of a Mexican script written by Alberto Bremer. I know, it’s confusing. But this script is written by Renato Fagundes (Os Penetras 2, Vai que Cola – O Começo) and Alice Name-Bomtempo (Vai que Cola), and it stars Larissa Manoela as a famous social media influencer named Ana.
Ana is great at social media, but not so great at driving, and one day crashes her phone while texting and driving. As punishment, she’s sent to live on her grandfather’s farm sans phone and sans internet. Will she learn that there’s more to life than notifications? I mean, yeah, probably. That’s usually how these things go.
Brazilian Netflix subscribers may know the name Larissa Manoela already, but for American subscribers and anyone else who is uninitiated, here’s what you need to know.
Who is Larissa Manoela?
Much like her character, Manoela is a Brazilian celebrity who excels at social media. She has a jaw-dropping 28 million followers on her Instagram, which is about 27.7 million more Instagram followers than the seven-time Academy Award nominee Glenn Close has. So, yeah, she’s kind of a big deal.
Manoela has perfected the art of Instagram story highlights, as well as the art of Instagram beach pics. She’s also perfected the art of monetizing Instagram: In 2017 the influencer purchased a mansion in Orlando, Florida.
In addition to Instagram curation, Manoela has been acting in Brazil since she was six years old. She got her start as a guest star on the GNT Brazilian series Mothern, and got her first big break as Viviane on the Brazilian remake of the Mexican telenovela, Corações Feridos. From there she landed the lead role of Maria Joaquina on another Brazilian remake of a Mexican telenovela, Carrossel. More recently she’s been in films like Meus 15 Anos and Bia Fala Sério, Mãe!
Manoela is also a singer and has one studio album, titled Up! Tour. And now she’s making her Netflix debut with Airplane Mode. We can only assume that with Netflix’s worldwide reach, Manoela will grow her audience even more.
