El Chavo del Ocho is a legendary character. No matter where you are in Latin America, the mention of his name always brings smiles and excitement. Created by the Mexican comedian Roberto Gómez Bolaños for a sketch in 1971, the character of the poor boy who lives in a neighborhood, premiered his program in 1973 and did not stop having a television presence until June 12, 1992. Since then, any appearance of the beloved character draws attention and more if it is the promise to “revive” him through a deepfake .
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On March 14, the Mexican comedian Eugenio Derbez uploaded a video to his Instagram account in which a production team can be seen working on a set with blue screens and an actor dressed in Chavo’s characteristic suit. The post was accompanied by the phrase: “Almost… stay tuned.” The comments were immediate and the followers began to ask questions and speculate about the project. That post has more than 1.1 million likes.
On March 17, Derbez uploaded another post with a video in which Chavo del Ocho (well, a deepfake of Chavo) is seen on a television screen, turning to the camera and speaking to the comedian who reacts from an armchair. The post has more than 4.8 million likes and the questions kept coming.
Finally, and through another post, Derbez revealed that the deepfake was produced as part of an advertising campaign for the Dish Latino pay television service. In the spot, Chavo leaves the television screen that Eugenio sees to talk with him about the success that Latinos have had and the way things have changed in the world. In this way, the company and Eugenio pay a small tribute to Chavo and to those who “took the first steps” .
This last post only has 108,000 likes.
Here you can see the full ad .