This series is a new adaptation of A. J. Quinnell's 1980 novel Man on Fire, ordered by Netflix in March 2023 from New Regency Productions and Chernin Entertainment, following previous film adaptations in 1987 and 2004.

Unlike the novel and prior films set in Italy and Malta, this adaptation relocates the story to modern-day Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and also incorporates elements from the follow-up novel The Perfect Kill.

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II was cast as the lead in June 2024, and director Steven Caple Jr. was hired to helm the first two episodes; both joined the series as executive producers.

Additional cast members, including Billie Boullet, Bobby Cannavale, Alice Braga, Scoot McNairy, and Paul Ben-Victor, were announced through October 2024.

Although the story is set in Rio de Janeiro, the series was actually filmed in Mexico City.

Production was briefly paused after lead actor Yahya Abdul-Mateen II was injured on set during filming in Mexico City.

Max Aruj composed the score for the series.

The Man on Fire story has previously inspired other adaptations, including the Hindi-language film Ek Ajnabee directed by Apoorva Lakhia and starring Amitabh Bachchan, and the Tamil-language film Aanai directed by Selvaa and starring Arjun Sarja.

The series received generally positive reviews, holding a 58% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 36 critic reviews and a score of 61 out of 100 on Metacritic based on 21 critics.