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Casting Call: Operation Car Wash

Alberto Youssef has made a career as a black market dealer in Brazil. Despite flaunting his dirty money with extravagant parties and private jets, he has yet to serve more than a year total in prison after nine arrests. Youssef's grand scheme to avoid jail time for these arrests is to plea bargain, exposing others in exchange for lighter sentences. Youssef is one of the individuals who blew the lid off the Petrobras scandal, testifying about laundering millions of dollars through Brazil as part of a kickback scheme. We think Youssef, described by prosecutors as "quiet and polite," should be played by Chilean-American actor Pedro Pascal. Fans will recognize Pascal from the fourth season of Game of Thrones, where he played Oberyn Martel aka the Red Viper. He most recently appeared in the Netflix original series Narcos.

One of the chief offenders in the Petrobras scandal is José Dirceu, who has twice been arrested for allegations of corruption in office. Dirceu was chief of staff under Lula before he left the position in disgrace and was barred from holding public office for 10 years for his orchestration of a different scandal, the Mensalao scandal. Dirceu is now once again under investigation for corruption and money laundering in regards to Operation Car Wash. Benicio Del Toro is one of the most famous Latin American actors in Hollywood, known for tough-guy roles in The Usual SuspectsTraffic, and most recently Sicario. He also won the Best Actor award at Cannes for his portrayal the Argentine revolutionary Che Guevara in Steven Soderbergh's Che.

Former Petrobras executive Paulo Roberto Costa will only serve on year of house arrest despite his conviction of money laundering and racketeering, as during his plea bargain he exposed many other individuals involved in the scandal. Costa came under suspicion from Brazilian police after receiving a luxury Land Rover as a gift from Albeto Youssef. We think the round faced and inconspicuous businessman would best be played by Wagner Mourawho portrays Pablo Escobar on Narcos and starred in both Elite Squad and its sequel.

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, aka Lula, held office from 2003 to 2011 and is one of the most beloved Brazilian presents. Lula's involvement in the scandal is not concrete at this point, but the former president may have received bribes from Petrobras while in office. Early in the month, Lula's home was raided in connection to the scandal, and the current president Dilma Rousseff recently tried to appoint him as her Chief of Staff as a legal shield to protect him from prosecution. However, he only held the position for one day before being suspended by the Supreme Court. We think the Academy Award nominated actor Edward James Olmos would be a good choice to play Lula. Olmos is best known for the role of William Adama in Battlestar Galactica, with other memorable appearances in Blade RunnerMiami Vice, and Stand and Deliver.

On the other side of the law is prosecutor Sérgio Moro, a federal judge who gained a reputation as a corruption buster for his role on the judicial team in the Mensalao scandal. Moro is the orchestrator of Operation Car Wash, which led to hundreds of arrests, indictments, and convictions. Moro has become famous in Brazil for his tough attacks on government corruptions, and is one of the main players in the scandal. We think this young lawyer should be played by Édgar Ramírez, a Venezuelan actor best known for the biopic series Carlos who has also appeared in Hollywood films like Zero Dark Thirty and the remake of Point Break.

Brazil's current president Dilma Rousseff is facing impeachment as one of the key figures in the scandal. Rousseff was elected president in 2010 and ran for the Worker's Party. She was also chief of staff under Lula, and was involved with Petrobras as a former part of the board of directors from 2003 to 2010. We want Rousseff to be played by Rita Moreno, who shot to fame for her Oscar-winning performance as Anita in West Side Story. Moreno is one of only 12 artists to have achieved an EGOT (winning an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony), and most recently appeared in episodes of Jane the Virgin and Grey's Anatomy.