Netflix has debuted the official trailer for Apocalypse in the Tropics, the latest documentary from Academy Award® nominee Petra Costa, set to premiere globally on July 14, 2025, and in select theaters starting July 11.
Following her acclaimed film The Edge of Democracy, Costa returns with another urgent political chronicle, this time exploring the rise of spiritual authoritarianism and religious power in Brazil. With rare access to figures including President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, former President Jair Bolsonaro, and evangelical leader Silas Malafaia, the film moves beyond politics to examine how belief itself can become a tool for control.
What Apocalypse in the Tropics Is About
The film poses a difficult question: When does a democracy end, and a theocracy begin?
Through ten years of footage, Apocalypse in the Tropics traces the escalating tension between faith and government, exposing how religion can evolve from private conviction to public weapon. Costa approaches her subject with the same unflinching eye that defined her Oscar-nominated The Edge of Democracy, layering political insight with poetic visual storytelling.
At its heart, this is a film about fragility not just of systems, but of the individuals inside them.
Watch the Trailer
Festival Circuit and Awards
Apocalypse in the Tropics is already making waves across major international festivals. It has been officially selected for:
- Venice Film Festival
- New York Film Festival
- Telluride Film Festival
- São Paulo International Film Festival
- IDFA
- San Sebastián Film Festival
- CPH:DOX
- HotDocs Toronto
- Sheffield DocFest
- Montclair Film Festival (Winner, Special Jury Prize)
- Havana Film Festival (Winner, Best Documentary)
Behind the Scenes: The Team Behind the Film
Directed, Written, and Produced by:
Petra Costa (The Edge of Democracy, Elena)
Co-writer & Producer:
Alessandra Orofino
Executive Producers:
Jenny Raskin, Jim & Susan Swartz, Geralyn White Dreyfous, Katrina vanden Heuvel, Jeffrey Lurie, Marie Therese Guirgis, Felipe Estefan, Rafael Georges Zein, Brad Pitt, Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Meadow Fund, Katy Drake Bettner, Kate Hurwitz, InMaat Foundation, Frida Polli, James Costa, Trevor Burgess.
The Poster
Release Info
- Title: Apocalypse in the Tropics
- Director: Petra Costa
- Global Netflix Release: July 14, 2025
- Theatrical Release (Select Cities): July 11, 2025
- Country of Origin: Brazil
- Language: Portuguese (with subtitles available worldwide)
As Brazil faces its own reckoning with power, belief, and democratic erosion, Apocalypse in the Tropics doesn’t just document history; it warns of where it might go next.
