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Smiley is a 2022 Spanish Netflix romantic comedy set in Barcelona. A bartender’s angry voice message, sent to the wrong man, becomes the starting point for an unexpectedly complicated romance between Álex and Bruno. The series combines a central gay love story with an ensemble of friends navigating dating, sex, work, family and loneliness.
It is a completed, dialogue-driven binge with a warm holiday-season atmosphere. The show is adapted from Guillem Clua’s stage play, and its first season reaches a romantic endpoint; the question of a second season has a definitive answer below.
What is Smiley about?
Álex is a Barcelona bartender who has been ghosted by a man he expected to date. He records a voice message demanding an explanation, but sends it to Bruno, a stranger who happens to be an architect and movie lover. That mistake leads to meetings, arguments, dates, separations and renewed attempts to connect.
The official synopsis describes Álex, Bruno and their friends dealing with “hesitations, hangups and missed connections” while looking for love in Barcelona. The mistaken voicemail is a classic meet-cute updated for messaging apps and modern dating, while the surrounding stories examine commitment, friendship, domestic life and moving on. Netflix’s official listing categorizes the series as comedy, romantic comedy and LGBTQ+ television.
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#1 Best Overall
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Is Smiley really a gay romantic comedy?
Yes. The principal romance is between two men, and the series is explicitly marketed and categorized as LGBTQ+ romantic comedy. “Gay romantic comedy” is accurate for the Álex–Bruno storyline, although the show is also an ensemble relationship series with queer and heterosexual supporting plots.
Its approach is generally warm, witty and lightly dramatic rather than issue-driven. Queer characters occupy familiar rom-com territory—attraction, miscommunication, jealousy and reconciliation—without the central conflict requiring their sexuality to be treated as a problem. Creator Guillem Clua has described the story as an accessible love story intended to reach beyond a specifically gay audience. Netflix’s title page supplies the platform’s LGBTQ+ and romantic-comedy classifications.
Álex, Bruno and the cast
Carlos Cuevas plays Álex, the emotionally reactive bartender whose ghosting experience triggers the mistaken message. Miki Esparbé plays Bruno, the more controlled, cerebral architect who receives it. Their chemistry is built from contrast, irritation and repeated missed opportunities rather than instant smoothness.
Rank #2
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| Actor | Character |
|---|---|
| Carlos Cuevas | Álex |
| Miki Esparbé | Bruno |
| Pepón Nieto | Javier |
| Meritxell Calvo | Vero |
| Giannina Fruttero | Patricia |
| Eduardo Lloveras | Albert |
| Ruth Llopis | Núria |
| Ramon Pujol | Ramón |
The supporting characters are structurally important. Their parallel relationship stories keep the series from becoming a single will-they/won’t-they plot stretched across eight installments, and they offer different queer and non-queer perspectives instead of presenting one couple as representative of everyone. Rotten Tomatoes’ cast listing identifies the principal actor and character credits, while reviews on its season page discuss the ensemble as a strength.
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There is one season of eight episodes. Netflix lists runtimes of approximately 33 to 37 minutes, and all eight episodes were released on December 7, 2022, so the complete story can be watched in a weekend.
The season uses the calendar as part of its structure. Christmas celebrations are central to episode 5, while episode 7 takes place around New Year’s Eve. That makes Smiley holiday-adjacent rather than a Christmas-only show: the seasonal settings add a cozy, reunion-oriented backdrop to a broader relationship comedy. Netflix’s episode guide provides the individual runtimes and descriptions.
Rank #3
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Where is it set, and what language is it in?
The story is set in Barcelona and reflects the city’s Spanish- and Catalan-speaking reality. Netflix identifies Spanish as the original audio; Catalan is also available in some regional catalogs. English, French, German, Italian and other subtitle or dubbing options vary by country, and the U.S. and Spanish listings do not show identical language choices.
Check the audio and subtitle menu on your local Netflix title page before starting. Age ratings, description text and download availability can also differ by territory. The Netflix catalog page is the authoritative place to check your region.
The play behind the Netflix series
Smiley began as Guillem Clua’s stage play, which premiered in Barcelona in November 2012 before running in Barcelona and Madrid and being translated or performed in several countries. The Netflix version therefore adapts an existing theatrical property; it is not a concept created from scratch by Netflix. About Netflix’s production feature traces that theatrical history.
Rank #4
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Clua remained the writer and showrunner. David Martín Porras and Marta Pahissa directed the episodes. Television expands the play’s premise with more locations, recurring Barcelona environments, parallel romances and room for stories about dating apps, ghosting and relationship ambiguity. The compact 30-to-35-minute format also preserves the efficiency of a theatrical romantic comedy, with dialogue, entrances, misunderstandings and reversals doing much of the work. Clua discussed the episode length and the production’s Spanish-Catalan context with El Periódico Catalunya.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How well does it work as a romantic comedy?
The series’ strongest case is its combination of accessibility and ensemble energy. It offers a central male-male romance through recognizable rom-com conventions, a vivid Barcelona setting, short episodes and a seasonal atmosphere without requiring a long commitment.
- Good fit: viewers wanting a completed queer rom-com, Spanish-language television, dialogue-led comedy, holiday warmth or several interlocking relationship stories.
- Potential drawbacks: viewers who dislike miscommunication, coincidences and repeated romantic reversals may find the plotting familiar.
- Critical caveat: Rotten Tomatoes’ captured listing shows a 100% critics’ score from six reviews and a 92% audience score from more than 100 ratings (retrieved August 16, 2026). That is encouraging but a small critics’ sample, not proof of universal acclaim; some reviews find the supporting stories more compelling than the central Álex–Bruno dynamic. See the season listing.
Overall, Smiley is best approached as a charming, easy-to-binge queer romantic comedy rather than a formally experimental drama. Its familiar construction is part of its accessibility, while the ensemble gives the show more texture than the central premise alone suggests.
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Does Smiley have a season 2?
No filmed second season was made. Guillem Clua confirmed in 2023 that the Netflix series would not continue. The careful wording matters: reports may call it canceled or not renewed, but the creator’s confirmation establishes that there would be no season 2. Cadena SER Catalunya and La Vanguardia report that confirmation.
The first television season reaches a romantic endpoint, with its finale titled “The Red Thread.” Clua’s stage property has a separate sequel, Smiley, después del amor (“Smiley: After Love”), but that is a theatrical continuation, not Netflix season 2 or a promised screen project. SensaCine discusses the stage sequel.
Where to watch Smiley
Smiley streams on Netflix, whose official page lists the series for streaming and download. Subscription plans, advertising tiers, prices, simultaneous streams and download restrictions depend on your country and can change. Use Netflix’s signup page for current plan information, and the local title page to verify availability and language options.
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