HITN premieres a Spanish-language dubbed version of "Servant of the People," starring now President ... [+]
As the war rages on in Ukraine and the popularity of president Volodymyr Zelensky has grown around the world, there has been renewed interest in the political satire series Servant of the People, which became the launching pad for his run for the country's highest office.
Netflix had the series in its U.S. streaming library from 2017 to 2021, but brought it back earlier this month by popular demand, according to the company. But if you speak Spanish and don't want to watch the series in Russian with English subtitles, there's a new option.
A Spanish-language dubbed Servidor del Pueblo will premiere on HITN-TV (Hispanic Information and Telecommunications Network), a public broadcaster that offers educational and cultural programming. It will also have Spanish-language captions.
"Servidor del Pueblo is a natural match for HITN, given our new strategy of incorporating series based on history or literary works," states Erika Vogt-Lowell, Director of Programming and Acquisitions for HITN.
The comedy is about a high school teacher whose rant about corruption in the Ukrainian government is captured on video and goes viral and, thanks to social media, is unexpectedly elected president. But then, the teacher-turned-president has to learn to govern his country and the humble everyman grows into a hero and revered leader. The series mirrors the real-life Zelensky, an actor, comedian and executive producer of the series.
The show catapulted the entertainer, who understands the media spotlight and the power of social media, into real-life politics. When he decided to run for president, Zelensky won with more than 70% of the vote. Now, he’s leading a country devastated by war, death and millions of refugees, fighting for its independence while trying to find a peaceful end to the conflict with Russia.
"Over the last several weeks, Volodymyr Zelensky has shown himself to be a true leader and inspiration to many not only in his country, but around the world. As soon as we saw that it was available, we jumped at the chance to show our viewers the series that played a major part in his winning the Presidency of Ukraine," says Vogt-Lowell.
"Additionally, we wanted to honor Ukraine and its people as the series shows how modern and vibrant life was in the country before the conflict. Servidor del Pueblo is an excellent example of how we have more in common than we have differences; the everyday life of people in Ukraine is quite similar to that of our viewers, even though they are separated by thousands of miles."
HITN will begin airing the series on Sunday, April 3 at 9:00 pm ET/PT. New episodes will premiere every Sunday with repeats airing during the week.
To help raise awareness of the children and families impacted by the conflict in Ukraine, the Spanish-language television network, available through most major cable and satellite services, as well as the HITN GO app in the United States and Puerto Rico, will be directing viewers to UNICEF, where they can find resources on how to help in the humanitarian effort.
