By Ana Perez

Eiza González to Star in Maria Felix Biopic

Eiza González is bringing legendary Mexican actress Maria Felix’s story to life on the big screen. The Baby Driver actress and director Matthew Heineman have partnered with the iconic Mexican film star’s estate for the project, the team is looking for a Latin American writer to adapt Felix’s life for the screen.

González will portray Felix and also produce the film alongside Dana Harris and Nicole King for Linden Entertainment. Walter Rivera will exec-produce the film on behalf of Felix’s estate.

“Maria’s tenacity and fierce way of living through some of the hardest adversity I’ve witnessed have inspired me and many more,” González told Deadline. “I’m incredibly honored to be playing her and to be bringing her voice and story to the world.” She added, “Maria constantly pushed boundaries and lived by her own rules, while the world tried to tear her down. I’ve always believed her life needs to be seen around the world, for people to learn more about how society depicts successful and driven women.”

Felix was one of the most successful Mexican stars of all time as well as one of the biggest stars of Latin American cinema in the 1940s and 1950s. The actress starred in 47 movies in Mexico, France, Italy and Argentina and was the queen of the silver screen in Mexico, becoming known as “La Doña.” Her story will explore love, loss and Mexican culture.

“We have long been searching for the right partner to tell Maria’s story, and we are proud to be partnering with Eiza González as she embodies so much of Maria’s strength, intelligence, passion, character and beauty,” Rivera said. “We know Eiza and this film have the power to influence change, much like Maria Felix did, and we know in Eiza’s hands, Maria Felix’s legacy will be portrayed in the most authentic light.”

González’s feature credits include Baby Driver, Hobbs & Shaw, Netflix’s Golden Globe-winning I Care a Lot, Godzilla vs. Kong, Michael Bay’s upcoming Ambulance and the TV series From Dusk till Dawn.

González is also in talks to join the cast of the Netflix sci-fi series Three-Body Problem. The creative duo David Benioff and D.B. Weiss of Game of Thrones are adapting the series.

González is represented by Linden Entertainment, WME and Jackoway Austen Tyerman.

Cierra Ramirez Joins Cast of Indie Film The Re-Education of Molly Singer

Cierra Ramirez (Good Trouble, The Fosters) is set in the leading role in the indie filmThe Re-Education of Molly Singer. Ramirez will play Lindsay, a college student caught in a love triangle. 

The Good Trouble star joins a cast featuring Britt Robertson, Ty Simpkin, Nico Santos, Holland Roden, Jaime Pressly and Wendie Malick.

Robertson will take the titular role of Molly, a former college party girl who later becomes an attorney. Molly has just botched her biggest case due to her inability to let go of her hard-partying lifestyle, but instead of getting fired she is tasked by her overbearing and controlling boss Brenda (Pressly) to re-enroll at her old alma mater, to befriend her socially awkward son Elliot (Simpkins) and guide him through an already tumultuous freshman year. Elliot and Ramirez’s Lindsay attend the same school.

Todd Friedman and Kevin Haskin penned the script. Producers are Warner Davis and Friedman. The Warner Davis Company and Hemlock Circle Productions are producing.

Ramirez, who is of Columbian and Mexican descent, is currently a co-lead and producer on Freeform’s Good Trouble, a continuation of her earlier series The Fosters. She received an Alma Award and an Imagen Award in 2012 for her work in the Patricia Riggen-directed drama Girl In Progress.

Aubrey Plaza & Ramón Rodríguez to Headline in Olga Dies Dreaming Hulu Pilot

Aubrey Plaza (Parks & Recreation) is set to star as the title character in Olga Dies Dreaming, with Ramón Rodríguez (Gang Related) as the male lead in Hulu’s drama pilot based on the novel by Xochitl Gonzalez. Both Rodriguez and Plaza will also serve as producers on the project.

Written by Gonzalez and to be directed by Alfonso Gomez-Rejon (Me and Earl and the Dying Girl), Olga Dies Dreaming is the story of a Nuyorican brother and sister from a gentrifying Sunset Park in Brooklyn who are dealing with an absentee, politically radical mother and their glittering careers among New York City’s elite in the wake of Hurricane Maria.

Plaza’s Olga Acevedo is a renowned wedding planner with a dark interior. For Olga, the pursuit of perfection has become a “compulsive survival mechanism as she tries to climb as far from her past as she can.” Despite her success, Olga feels that the important people around her don’t deem her as an equal and is always wanting more. 

Rodríguez’s Prieto is Olga’s (Plaza) older brother and is a popular congressman who wears his Puerto Rican pride like a badge of honor. He grew up playing a part: the cheerful, overachieving, involuntary patriarch of a broken home. He’s lonely and tired but wakes up every morning wholly prepared to be the fixer, continuing to present this facade to his constituents and his opponents alike.

Gomez-Rejon partnered with Gonzalez after reading her novel in manuscript form. Together, they developed the series from the ground up and will exec-produce the pilot. 20th Television is the studio.

Plaza will be seen starring in Guy Ritchie’s untitled thriller opposite Jason Statham and Best Sellers opposite Michael Caine. On TV, Plaza most recently starred in Noah Hawley’s FX series Legion. She is repped by MGMT, CAA and Schreck Rose Dapello.

Rodríguez recently wrapped filming the horror pic Lullaby from Annabelle director John R. Leonetti. He starred in Disney’s The One and Only Ivan alongside Bryan Cranston. Rodríguez is repped by Silver Lining Entertainment and UTA.

Aaron Diaz & Ana Brenda Contreras to Star in Series Toda La Sangre for Pantaya

Aaron Diaz (Quantico) and Ana Brenda Contreras (Dynasty) are set to star in the Mexican crime thriller series Toda La Sangre for Pantaya, Starzplay, Spiral International and Fremantle Mexico.

Produced by Fremantle Mexico and directed by Luis Prieto and Hari Sama, the series is based on the best-selling novels by Mexican author Bernardo Esquinca.

Diaz will play the role of Eugenio Casasola, a journalist who joins forces with Lieutenant Edith Mondragon, played by Contreras, in a quest to uncover the truth behind a series of murders that resemble Aztec sacrifices in modern-day Mexico City.

Prieto’s previous work includes Kidnap, White Lines and Pusher while Sama is best known for the movie This Is Not Berlin.

The ten-episode series is developed and produced by showrunner and exec-producer Zasha Robles from Spiral International, the creator behind the Emmy-winning series Falco.

“We are extremely lucky to be working with such talented creators, Luis Prieto, Hari Sama, Aaron Diaz and Ana Brenda Contreras, as well as the production team behind Fremantle Mexico, who together are the dream team in the creation of our Aztec thriller – Toda la Sangre,” Robles stated.

“Toda La Sangre is an atmospheric premium series that explores Mexico’s complex cultural heritage through unforgettable images and characters,” added Mario Almeida, head of content for Pantaya. “We are extremely proud of the team Zasha has assembled to bring Toda La Sangre to life, with A-list talent both behind and in front of the camera.”

Coty Cagliolo, Head of Production, Fremantle Mexico, added: “Bernardo Esquinca’s work is loved and admired all over the world, so we are excited to bring Toda La Sangre to life, a truly gripping series with a stellar cast both in front and behind the camera. Set against the iconic backdrop of Mexico City, Toda La Sangre is a crime thriller like no other, a race to catch a serial killer before they strike again, and where ancient worlds and present-day collide with devastating consequences.” 

Diaz is represented by Innovative Artists Agency and the Make Good Group. Ana Brenda Contreras is represented by 3 Management.

The post Latinas Actress Taking the Producing Reins and Making Film and TV Happen first appeared on .

Funny actress Plaza (Parks and Recreation, Black Bear) stars opposite action star Jason Statham (Crank) in the humorous spy flick, which is currently shooting on location in Qatar, Turkey, and other world spots.

The film is about MI6 agent Orson Fortune (Statham) recruited by a global intelligence alliance to track down and stop the sale of  deadly weapons technology that threatens the world order. Against his wishes, the agent is paired with CIA high-tech expert Sarah Fidel (Plaza) to go on a globe-trotting mission. Fortune will have to use his charm, ingenuity, and stealthiness to infiltrate billionaire arms dealer Greg Simmonds.

The cast includes Josh Hartnett (Lucky Number Slevin), Hugh Grant (Love Actually), Cary Elwes (Saw), and Bugzy Malone (The Gentlemen). 

Ritchie is also exec producing the film which is based on a screenplay by Ivan Atkinson and Marn Davies. Both writers previously worked with the director in the international blockbuster The Gentlemen and the recently wrapped-up action thriller Wrath of Man. Atkinson and Statham also produce along with Bill Block (District 9).

Plaza is best known for her role in the TV series Parks and Recreation which won a Peabody Award in 2011. In 2014 the half-Puerto Rican star proclaimed to Latina Magazine that she is “Boricua pa’que lo sepas!” 

The role in Five Eyes may be her biggest on the big screen to date. 

She has earned accolades for her work in mainly independent movies doing both dramatic and comedic roles to critical acclaim. Most recently the Hollywood Critics Association announced that she will be recognized with the Acting Achievement Award for her performance in the experimental dramedy Black Bear. 

Three years ago, Plaza won the Film Independent Spirit Award for best feature for Ingrid Goes West, a film she starred and produced along with Matt Spicer, Jared Goldman, Adam Mirels, and Robert Mirels. And In 2012, she landed her first starring role alongside Mark Duplass, in the comedy, Safety Not Guaranteed, for which she received the Young Hollywood Award for breakthrough performance by an actress and the American Latino Media Arts (ALMA) Award for favorite movie actress in a comedy.

Five Eyes can potentially raise the comedienne-turn-actress Plaza’s boxoffice standing worldwide. Although a budget is yet to be disclosed, the Miramax production is expected to cost millions. As a point of reference, Ritchie’s 2019 The Gentlemen for STX Films cost $ 22 million and made more than $115 million globally.

Ritchie recently posted an Instagram video showing Five Eyes cast and crew at work in Turkey, with Plaza walking alongside Statham in scenes. The director and crew members wear facemasks for the coronavirus pandemic.

Five Eyes is financed by Miramax and will be distributed by STX. 

Here is a sneak peek of the film on director Guy Ritchie’s Instagram:

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Featured Photo: NBC/NBCU

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