Netflix Exec Diego Ávalos: ‘I’ve Always Been a Creative Soul’

Today, Diego Ávalos, Netflix executive and content guru, is one of the leading figures in the streaming platform’s non-English-language content creation. Yet while he’s made countless contributions to television and visual programming, from short-form television shows to full-length feature films, his creativity comes from within rather than from industry influence. He’s crafted a career full of milestones including developing projects such as La Casa de Papel (Money Heist), Élite, and El Inocente (Innocence), Troll, and the first Netflix series originating in Portugal, Glória.

In his leadership role with Netflix, Diego Ávalos is responsible for content in Spain, Portugal, and the Nordics, and for the consolidation of operations in the company’s first production hub in Europe, headquartered in Spain, which he opened in 2019. But how did this creator and leader find his way in a booming global streaming industry from his beginnings in Baja California, Mexico? It all starts with family.

“I’ve always, since I was a kid, been a very creative soul,” Diego confesses. “The creative side was always very deep in me, especially books. Storytelling was definitely there all the time.”

Diego Ávalos’ Creativity Spurred by Family, Education, and Personal Drive

Ávalos credits his parents with nurturing his passion and originality by encouraging him to learn continuously and pursue his interests with pride. Early on, his mother identified his interest in people and creative projects, connecting with him through her career in anthropology. Storytelling also played a major role in Ávalos’ childhood.

“I loved reading since I was a very early age, devoured books,” he shares. “I didn’t grow up with a TV or a movie theater in our city, so that was something that is odd for me because now that’s what I do for a living.”

With education in mind, Ávalos’ family funded his move from Cabo San Lucas to the United States when he was just 14, enabling him to pursue his academics. He graduated from Santa Clara University in the heart of Silicon Valley with a bachelor’s degree in business and operation management information systems and — an homage to his mother —a minor in anthropology.

Launching a Career in Creativity and Connection

After graduation, Ávalos obtained a consultant position with the global professional services organization, Deloitte in San Francisco, California. There, he was able to quickly climb the ladder, benefiting from several promotions along the way. Despite his success, Ávalos says he “definitely saw a really great career path there. But I also saw that it didn’t fulfill my passion long term. If I looked down the road and I saw myself, it just wasn’t something that connected and I had something missing.”

His next career step took him to Yahoo in Miami, Florida. There, as he tells it, one of his mentors approached him and said, “We’re really expanding outside of the U.S. Emerging markets are a key priority for the company. We need somebody that both speaks the language and has a business mindset. Is this something that interests you? It’s a little bit outside of your path that you’re on right now, so you’d have to reinvent yourself.”

Diego Ávalos jumped at the chance.

He joined Yahoo Latin America, ultimately heading up its content strategy and strategic partnerships. He applied his interest in technology, but ultimately found that his ability to exercise creativity was restricted by the nature of the job.

During his tenure, Diego Ávalos contributed to Yahoo’s evolution from a predominant text and image-based website to a dynamic provider of videos and original content curated to resonate with specific target markets. At the same time, Ávalos pursued an executive MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University in Chicago. This empowered him to help invigorate the innovation and organization behind the scenes at Yahoo while satisfying his ongoing drive to learn and grow his skill sets.

Fate would intervene once again. Ávalos recalls how, out of the blue, he got a phone call from Netflix. “It was a really odd call,” he says. “It was basically, ‘You kind of have the experience we want, but you don’t have the experience we need, but you profile and expertise interesting.’ Anyway, it was a really odd first contact with them, but I ended up getting an offer to move across to LA. I jumped on it in a second.”

Starting as a senior manager, he found Netflix was a place where he could nurture his creativity and grow professionally. He was pivotal in the launch of Netflix’s first non-English-language series, Club de Cuervos (Club of Crows) in 2015, which became wildly popular in Mexico and launched the Netflix local original initiative. He was a founder of the non-English-language content team, which now produces hundreds of series, films, and documentaries every year around the world. He rose to director and vice president roles in the company, launching hits like Money Heist (Casa de Papel), Élite and Troll along the way. “I really found my passion and my calling in storytelling,” says Ávalos.

Spanish-Language Content Takes Off at Netflix Under Diego Ávalos

While storytelling and creativity have been part of Diego Ávalos’ career trajectory since day one, his ambition and passion truly united at Netflix. He’s held leading roles in content direction and strategy at the streaming giant for over nine years with a focus on non-English-language content that can truly connect with audiences. This takes a keen eye not only for talent, but also stories that reach across cultures, barriers, and languages to ring true to people from all walks of life.

And, Ávalos adds, “I am, in the job that I have, trying to think about what’s going to be relevant to audiences two or three years from now. It is not a science, it’s an art at the end of the day.

“When you connect that with storytelling, it’s a pretty powerful engine.”

These stories have come to life on Netflix through several franchises, series, and productions. Ávalos was instrumental in bringing the internationally popular Money Heist (Casa de Papel) from a local television network in Spain to Netflix, expanding the series’ reach with funding for additional seasons. His creative vision helped him see the potential that Money Heist had — not just in the story, but in talent. “It truly connected globally; it wasn’t just a local show … It also changed the trajectory of the Spanish audiovisual industry — it confirmed the talent that was already here, on a local stage,” commented Ávalos.

While Ávalos has gone on to back many productions for Spanish-language content including Through My Window (Atraves de mi Ventana), The Girl of the Snow (La Chica de Nieve), Where is Marta? (¿Donde esta Marta?) and I Am Georgina (Soy Georgina), the end is nowhere in sight. He’s concentrated his creative spirit on nurturing the development and release of content that’s uniquely cultural and provides broader perspectives that reach across borders. Promoting diverse Spanish, Portuguese, and Nordic series and films for Netflix has Diego Ávalos supporting not just Netflix’s goals, but also the development of Spanish, Portuguese, and Nordic talent both in front of and behind the