Julio Peña

Disney's Lab in Argentina

Julio Peña landed in Buenos Aires in 2018 at the age of eighteen. Disney was looking for a lead for Bia, and he accepted the one-way ticket without knowing he would spend two years away from Spain. On that shoot, he learned the mechanics of the fast-paced television industry.

It was his first professional contract.

Between 2019 and 2020, he played Manuel Gutiérrez in a production that demanded singing, dancing and acting in front of a global teen audience. But the real training happened in the downtime between scenes (where he learned that patience is an actor's most important tool).

In 2021, he returned to Madrid to take the stage at the Teatro EDP Gran Vía in the musical Something Rotten!. That experience allowed him to step away from the cameras for a while.

The Netflix Algorithm

The actor's visibility skyrocketed in 2022. Netflix released Through My Window, and the phenomenon of Wattpad adaptations put him at the center of a massive fan community. He played Ares Hidalgo (a cold character who required very strict physical control).

And the gamble paid off.

The film racked up millions of viewing hours in its first week. Netflix immediately confirmed two sequels titled Through My Window: Across the Sea, released in 2023, and Through Your Eyes, released in 2024.

Peña had to manage sudden fame while filming on location on the Costa Brava. In 2023, he sought a change of pace to avoid being typecast in teen romance.

Escaping the Teen Phenomenon

Joining the spin-off of Money Heist was a strategic move in his schedule. In 2023, he played Roi in the series Berlin. He worked under the direction of Álex Pina and shared the screen with Pedro Alonso in a heist plot set in Paris.

Filming this series took several months and required specific physical training for the action sequences. But the most significant change was a shift in acting style toward something drier and less idealized.

He wasn't chasing easy applause but the respect of European casting directors.

In 2024, his name appeared on the lists of Spain's most influential talent agencies. The production of Berlin confirmed a second season after the impact of the first eight episodes. The contract for the new episodes was signed under strict confidentiality clauses at the offices of Vancouver Media.