Habeas Corpus Netflix Cast, Characters and Innocence Project Brasil Inspiration Explained

Habeas Corpus is a Brazilian Netflix legal drama led by Marjorie Estiano as law professor Inez and Any Gabrielly as her brilliant student Marina. It premieres on September 23, 2026. The fictional series follows a university wrongful-conviction review group trying to prove that a young man was imprisoned for a crime he says he did not commit. Netflix says the story is inspired by the work of Innocence Project Brasil.

The title has broad legal meaning, but this guide is specifically about the Netflix series. Readers interested in other screen stories about flawed investigations and disputed accusations can also explore our American Nightmare Netflix true-story guide and Bad Surgeon Netflix review.

Marjorie Estiano as Inez

Inez is a respected law professor who leads a post-conviction review group. Her team studies the case of a young man who insists that he was wrongly convicted. That position gives Inez both institutional authority and a moral burden: she must teach students how to test evidence while confronting a justice system shaped by inequality, power and the possibility of irreversible error.

Estiano is an acclaimed Brazilian actor and musician known internationally for the medical drama Under Pressure and for major television and film roles. In Habeas Corpus, she anchors both sides of the series: the legal investigation and the emotionally charged secrets surrounding Marina’s arrival.

Any Gabrielly as Marina

Marina is Inez’s brightest student, but she did not seek out the professor only for academic reasons. Netflix says Marina has a secret plan connected to an injustice that deeply affected her family. That hidden motive creates the central tension between the careful work of criminal review and a personal desire to correct the past.

Gabrielly is known as a singer and former member of the global pop group Now United, as well as the Brazilian Portuguese voice of Moana. The series gives her a dramatic role built around intelligence, grief and moral ambiguity rather than a simple student-mentor relationship.

Instagram: @anygabrielly

Danton Mello

Danton Mello is part of the confirmed ensemble, although Netflix has not yet published his character’s name or connection to the wrongful-conviction case. His long career across Brazilian television, film and theater makes him one of the production’s most recognizable supporting performers. Any description of his role beyond that would currently be speculation.

Marisa Orth

Marisa Orth is confirmed for Habeas Corpus, but her character remains undisclosed. She is widely associated with Brazilian television and comedy, especially Sai de Baixo, and her casting adds an experienced performer capable of moving between sharp humor and drama. Netflix has not said whether she plays a lawyer, family member, official or witness.

Instagram: @marisaorth

Naruna Costa

Naruna Costa joins the ensemble in an unnamed role. Netflix audiences may recognize her from Brotherhood and 3%. Because Habeas Corpus focuses on the human consequences of institutions and inequality, Costa’s presence is notable, but the official announcements do not identify where her character sits in the case.

Instagram: @narunacosta

Natália Lage

Natália Lage is another confirmed cast member whose role has not been revealed. Her credits span long-running Brazilian television, films and streaming projects. Until Netflix releases a trailer, episode guide or full character list, it is safest to describe her as part of the principal ensemble rather than attach her to a specific side of the investigation.

Vladimir Brichta

Vladimir Brichta is confirmed in the series, with character details still under wraps. Known for both dramatic and comedic roles, including the film Bingo: The King of the Mornings, he adds further depth to an ensemble designed to carry courtroom conflict, family secrets and competing versions of the truth.

Felipe Ricca

Felipe Ricca appears in Netflix’s early cast announcement and in the first-look ensemble imagery. His character has not been named. Recent screen credits include Desperate Lies and Rua Alice, making him a familiar face to viewers following newer Brazilian streaming productions.

Instagram: @felipericca

Hypólito

Hypólito is included in Netflix’s confirmed cast list, but the official materials provide no character name or story description. The lack of detail matters here because the series is built around hidden agendas and shifting suspicions. It would be misleading to assume that every announced performer belongs to Inez’s student group.

Luiza Gabus Mendes

Luiza Gabus Mendes appears in the first-look cast photograph alongside Nicolas Lee, Felipe Ricca, Any Gabrielly, Marjorie Estiano and Pedro Roza. Netflix has not disclosed her role. The group image suggests that several younger ensemble members may be close to the university storyline, but that remains an inference rather than a confirmed character assignment.

Nicolas Lee

Nicolas Lee is also visible in the first official ensemble image and appears in Netflix’s December cast announcement. His character has not been identified. Viewers should expect more precise information when Netflix publishes a full trailer or character guide closer to the September premiere.

Paula Cohen

Paula Cohen is a confirmed member of the cast with an undisclosed role. Her extensive work in Brazilian film, television and theater fits the production’s mix of established performers and younger talent. Nothing official yet indicates whether her character works inside the legal system or is connected to the families at the center of the case.

Pedro Roza

Pedro Roza appears in Netflix’s first-look image and its initial ensemble announcement. No character name has been released. His placement in the promotional group makes him one of the faces to watch as marketing expands, particularly if Netflix begins identifying the students who assist Inez.

Renata Gaspar

Renata Gaspar is confirmed in an unnamed role. She is known for Brazilian comedy and dramatic screen work, a useful combination for a series that promises courtroom pressure alongside emotionally complicated relationships. Netflix’s current material does not say how her character connects to Inez or Marina.

Tato Gabus Mendes

Tato Gabus Mendes appears in Netflix’s August 2026 cast list. His character has not been disclosed. The newer announcement does not repeat every name from the earlier ensemble release, so the most accurate approach is to treat both official lists as complementary unless Netflix announces a casting change.

What is Habeas Corpus about?

The series follows Inez and a wrongful-conviction review group as they examine the case of a young man who says he is innocent. The work requires more than courtroom argument. A review team must question how evidence was gathered, whether testimony is reliable, what new material exists and whether the original process produced a just result. Netflix frames these questions through a fictional mystery rather than a documentary recreation.

Marina complicates that mission because her interest is personal. She wants to repair an injustice tied to her family, and Inez does not initially know about that agenda. As the group makes new discoveries, the students face a conflict between justice, loyalty and the desire for amends. The series promises twists, rivalries and moral uncertainty, but the central question is whether correcting one wrong can create another.

How Innocence Project Brasil inspired the Netflix series

Innocence Project Brasil is a nonprofit association created in 2016 to address wrongful convictions in Brazil. The organization analyzes claims of innocence, investigates cases for new evidence and, when that evidence supports the claim, seeks relief through the courts. It also promotes research and policy discussion about the causes of miscarriages of justice and ways to prevent them.

The organization also works with law students through a legal clinic connected to the Getúlio Vargas Foundation Law School in São Paulo. That real educational model helps explain why the fictional series places Inez at the head of a university review group. Students are not presented merely as observers. They study records, investigate evidence and learn how procedural failures can affect real lives.

Netflix is careful to say that Habeas Corpus uses the organization’s work as a starting point for a fictional story. It should not be treated as a documentary about one named Innocence Project Brasil case, and viewers should not assume that Inez, Marina or the accused young man represent specific real people. For another fact-based story centered on disputed events and family testimony, see our Maternal Instinct documentary guide.

Who created Habeas Corpus?

Overall director Luiz Villaça co-created the series with Leonardo Moreira and Donna Oliveira. Villaça and Flávia Lacerda direct the episodes, while Netflix credits Leonardo Moreira with the final scripts. Café Royal produces the series, with Adriana Tavares serving as executive producer. The combination of legal mystery and melodrama is deliberate: the case unfolds through institutions, but its consequences are personal.

What to expect from the Netflix legal drama

The official description points to courtroom tension, secrets, rivalries and relationships that become more intense with each episode. That suggests a serialized mystery rather than a case-of-the-week procedural. Inez’s group will likely follow one central conviction across the season while Marina’s hidden purpose changes how the team interprets new evidence. Netflix has not yet announced the episode count, runtime or age rating.