New Netflix series Narcos, Wagner Moura's understated performance of Pablo Escobar

There have been some complaints that Wagner Moura, a Brazilian actor, shouldn't play Pablo Escobar, the notorious Colombian druglord. Having looked at the cast list, it seems most of them are Mexican with some other actors from other parts of Latin America. Moura is Brazilian, perhaps the director who may feel more comfortable working with a very good Brazilian actor. I do like Moura's understated style, while a lesser actor would have gone the bombastic, charismatic route to portray Escobar. 

I don't know how bad the Colombian accents were, but minus the accents, I thought the cast overall did a great job acting their parts. 

Isn't acting a part convincingly more important than an actor's nationality/accent? 

Also, accents are highly subjective. I've heard people speak highly or trash the same accent. There are endless discussions about Boston accents. Accents are also indicative of socio-economic backgrounds, so a character may be from the same town but have different influences due to education, cultural upbringing, etc. 

How many really, really good Colombian actors are there? To my knowledge, Latin American media is more focused on soap operas. I wouldn't really want a predominantly soap actor to act hammy in a "serious" production.

Sometimes a director may choose an actor of a different nationality due to logistics - maybe it was easier to assemble a crew from a certain region. Maybe he knew some of those actors already and know they can be relied on. Maybe the production knew or trusted a region/group of people better than if they went with something or someone totally new. 

There was a brouhaha when Zhang Ziyi was chosen for Memoirs of a Geisha instead of a Japanese actress. At the time Zhang Ziyi was a much higher profile actress than any Japanese actress. She can also act. Even some Japanese liked her portrayal, although of course some were unhappy. 

It must be said that producers/studios will accept the actors with bigger names, talent, and work experience than choosing an actor who is authentic to a character's nationality but can't act or doesn't have enough star power. An actor is supposed to convincingly portray the character even if he or she has nothing in common with that character.

Picasso said something along that lines that art is a bunch of lies to tell the truth. TV/Film is make-believe. I thought Narcos did a good job in portraying the moral of the Escobar story, especially with excellent pacing and rhythm that so many shows lack.