Diego Luna opens up on 10-year journey to bring La Máquina to the screen

Their new series, La Máquina, is now available to stream on Disney Plus in the UK, and it follows an ageing boxer (Bernal) whose manager and friend (Luna) is determined to get him back on top.

However, when a nefarious organisation rears its head, the stakes of one match become life or death.

Luna recently spoke exclusively with RadioTimes.com about the new drama, and the 10-year road he and Bernal have been down to get to this point.

"Well, it's been a long time," Luna explained. "I think it's been 10 years since Gael and I had a conversation about getting to work together again, and making sure it was something that would allow us to keep exploring the themes we care about, and to talk about friendship and Mexico, and boxing seemed to be the right way to go.

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"The story of a boxer was a great tool for us to reflect also on the Mexico that we experienced when we were teenagers.

"So, yeah, it was 10 years ago that we got together, we said, 'Let's talk about a boxer and its manager, the end of a career.' Then we wanted to do a film. Then that film became a little too robust, it was suddenly too much we wanted to talk about.

"And it turned into this project. We found amazing partners, working with Fox Searchlight, who were open to explore and to develop this with us, and here we are."

Luna also spoke about his own personal background with boxing, explaining: "I did a documentary about Julio César Chávez, who's this amazing boxer, one of the great champions of Mexico, and he was in the peak of his career when I was 12.

"So I do remember he was my reference, he was the Mexican beating everyone, he was the most successful story in sports that I could connect with.

"Boxing is a huge, huge sport in Mexico, I think it's one of the things we're really good at. There's been many, many Mexican champions.

"But also, boxing is a great tool to talk about fame, about an event that concentrates and connects different parts of society in my country - an event that creates huge stars, people that become really popular.

"You know, a fighter can be known in every level of society. And what it generates is so primal, the event is so powerful.

"And it's very theatrical also, it happens to the people there and you witness something that won't happen again. It's also a great tool to talk about what popularity does to you and what these stories can create, in a personal level and in an intimate level.

"I think talking about a boxer and a manager is a great tool to also talk about the world Gael and I experience every day, and the one we live in.

"And this whole idea of also ending a career. How do you end the career? Everyone teaches you to get there, but no one to say goodbye.

"So, it was a fun and interesting journey to take with my close friend and also reconnect with many people in Mexico. We put together a team that is the people we've been working with since day one. This is not just us, but there's other people in this crew that were there on Y tu mamá también, so it goes as far as that."

La Máquina is now streaming on Disney Plus. You can sign up to Disney Plus for £4.99 a month or £79.90 a year now.

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