‘Desperate Lies’ Cast And Character Guide

Sometimes lies seem easier than the truth, but at what cost? If the lies end up ruining lives you might wonder what the point of all this drama was. Desperate Lies on Netflix makes you feel exactly that. This seventeen-episode telenovela tells the story of a desperate mother, Liana, who, to keep her twin boys Marcos and Mateus to herself, keeps lying. These lies make everyone around her miserable. But in the end, the truth sets them free—a message her husband, Tomas, kept preaching throughout the show. However, his version of the truth wasn’t really the truth at all, and it backfired on him. So, what are the motives of these characters? Why did they keep lying until the truth came out? Let’s dive into the cast and character guide of the series to find out.

Spoilers Ahead

Liana 

Juliana Paes plays the role of Liana in Desperate Lies, and what a journey her character goes through. Liana is a woman who desperately wants to become a mother. She and her husband, Tomas, turned their intimacy into a chore, sticking to a strict schedule to boost their chances of getting pregnant. When she finally did conceive, she thought her dream had come true. But then came the nightmare. Actually, Liana found out that Tomas had cheated on her. Feeling hurt and betrayed, she decided to have a night out to forget her troubles. That night ended in tragedy when she was assaulted by a bartender named Oscar. This traumatic event changed her life forever. Liana carried the heavy guilt of that night, even though it wasn’t her fault. To make matters worse, she ended up pregnant through superfecundation, a rare condition that meant that her twins had different fathers—one was Tomas’, and the other was Oscar’s. Liana tried to keep this terrible truth hidden. She didn’t want to build her marriage on lies, but she couldn’t bear the thought of raising her assaulter’s child. In a moment of desperation, she decided to give away Oscar’s son. But being a mother, she couldn’t go through with it. She pleaded with Tomas to raise them as his own, but he struggled with it.

Liana did everything in her power to shield her sons from the truth, as she knew that Marcos might not be able to handle it. But when Tomas ended up in prison for killing Oscar and then, after coming out, threatened to reveal everything, Liana had no choice but to come clean. Finally, Liana told the truth to both of her sons, and it did set her free. That lie had been a huge burden on her soul, and she found peace in honesty. She shared her story, including the nightmare of her pregnancy, how she initially wanted to give Marcos away, and how she took him back because she couldn’t abandon her child. Despite everything, Liana remained faithful to Tomas while he was in prison, even though he was with another woman. Liana realized she had never been in the wrong. Her husband, society, and the people around her made her feel shameful, and for that, she could not move past that feeling of guilt. But no one understood the trauma she had gone through. But in the end, she decided to move on with her life. Liana’s character is a testament to resilience and the power of truth. Despite all the pain and suffering, she found a way to move forward and embrace the happiness she deserved with her two boys and her new lover, Dante.

Tomas 

Vladimir Brichta’s character, Tomas, had a significant and complex arc in Desperate Lies. At first, Tomas seemed like the perfect guy, but as the series went on, it became clear he was manipulative and cruel. Early on, we saw him cheat on his wife, Liana, and blame her for it, as he claims her pressure pushed him to it. Despite this, he tried to move past the infidelity by suggesting they deserved a chance at happiness. However, when Tomas discovered the truth about Liana’s pregnancy—that one of the twins, Marcos, was the result of her being assaulted by Oscar—he reacted coldly and distantly instead of offering her comfort. When Liana initially wanted to give Marcos away, Tomas was happy, but when she decided to keep both twins, he made it clear he could never accept Marcos as his own. He treated Marcos and Mateus differently. It just shows that he had control over every decision.

Tomas’s intentions were conflicting. He did kill Oscar to protect his family from the truth, as he believed it would prevent their lives from being ruined. Yet, this act landed him in prison, ultimately causing more harm. Prison changed Tomas for the worse. He again started cheating on Liana with another woman and distanced himself from his family as he started blaming them for his downfall. He planned to reveal their secrets to the public to regain respect and sympathy by presenting Liana’s assault as an affair and disowning Marcos. This manipulative behavior backfired. By the end, Tomas had lost the respect of those around him, including his son, Mateus. People saw his true colors—a cheater and a liar with no emotional connection or sense of love for his loved ones. He ended up losing it all. So to take revenge, Tomas set fire to Liana’s home with Marcos and Mateus inside. This desperate act led to his final downfall, as the police arrested him. Tomas’s belief that the truth would set him free was deeply ironic, I feel. Because instead of liberation, his version of the truth landed him in prison again by stripping away the respect and love. 

Oscar

Felipe Abib, as Oscar, was the main villain of Desperate Lies, and his actions cast a dark shadow over the entire story. He was the one who assaulted Liana and twisted the truth to make it seem like she was equally interested, which was far from reality. It shows the classic behavior of an assaulter, manipulating the situation to suit his side of the story. Oscar was more than just a one-time offender. He turned a blind eye to assaults happening at his bar, even providing the drugs used to drug the victims. With the help of his rich father, he managed to escape justice time after time. However, Tomas’ desire for revenge exposed Oscar’s drug dealings, which led to his exile in Argentina. But Oscar’s return marked the start of more trouble for Liana and her family. To seek revenge, Oscar blamed Tomas for his financial ruin and demanded a large sum of money, using the claim that Marcos was his son as leverage. But you know what? His goal was never about fatherly love; it was all about the money—one million dollars. He was ruthless and threatened the lives of Liana’s children when they couldn’t meet his demands. Ultimately, Oscar’s terror ended when Tomas killed him to protect his family. Oscar’s character shows a complete lack of remorse. 

Mateus and Marcos 

Desperate Lies‘ story really centers around the two brothers, Marcos and Mateus. These two were inseparable from birth. Even when they found out the shocking truth about their parentage, which turned their lives upside down, their love and support for each other stayed the same. When Marcos found out about his real father, it was a huge shock. He learned he was actually the son of Oscar, a criminal, instead of Tomas. This was hard to accept, but knowing that Liana and Mateus were always there for him helped a lot. Marcos had an accident and lost his memory for a while. During this time, Mateus chose to keep the truth from him, telling lies to protect his brother from the painful reality. Marcos was just as caring toward Mateus. Despite knowing that Tomas didn’t want him, Marcos still stepped up to protect Mateus. When Oscar’s father tried to assassinate Tomas, Marcos stopped him. He couldn’t bear the thought of Mateus losing a father, even one as flawed as Tomas. This shows just how much the brothers cared for each other. No matter what, they always had each other’s backs. 

Silvia 

Paloma Duarte as Silvia plays Tomas’s sister, who is actually completely different from him personality-wise. She was non-judgmental, considerate, and a true friend. She was the first to know about Liana’s pregnancy secret of superfecundation, being her gynecologist, but she kept it to herself. She did not even tell Tomas, as she believed it wasn’t her story to tell. When Tomas treated Liana poorly, Silvia was always there for her and the boys. She never judged Liana, no matter what. However, Silvia was very invested in her son Inacio’s life, even when he grew up, because he had a disease that caused blindness. After all, she was a mother. Eventually, Silvia learned to step back and move forward with her own life. She married another doctor and moved away from their hometown once she saw that Inacio was doing well and had become a father himself. This showed her ability to balance being a caring mother while also finding happiness for herself.