Release Date: January 13, 2023

Directed by: Jean-François Richet

Written by: Charles Cumming

CAST: Gerard Butler, Mike Culter, Yoson An, Daniella Pineda

SYNOPSIS: 

In the white-knuckle action movie Plane, pilot Brodie Torrance (Gerard Butler) saves his passengers from a lightning strike by making a risky landing on a war-torn island – only to find that surviving the landing was just the beginning. The passengers are taken hostage by dangerous rebels, and the only person Torrance can count on for help is Louis Gaspare (Mike Colter), an accused murderer. Daniella Pineda plays Bonnie, the professional and formidable head flight attendant in the movie.

Plane is produced by Di Bonaventura Pictures for Lionsgate.

Magic Mike´s Last Dance 

Release Date: February 10, 2023

Directed by: Steven Soderbergh

Written by: Reid Carolin

CAST: Channing Tatum, Salma Hayek, Nancy Carroll, Carmen Olivares

Synopsis:

“Magic” Mike Lane (Channing Tatum) takes to the stage again after a lengthy hiatus, following a business deal that went bust, leaving him broke and taking bartender gigs in Florida. For what he hopes will be one last hurrah, Mike heads to London with a wealthy socialite (Salma Hayek Pinault) who lures him with an offer he can’t refuse… and an agenda all her own. With everything on the line, once Mike discovers what she truly has in mind, will he–and the roster of hot new dancers he’ll have to whip into shape–be able to pull it off?

Magic Mike’s Last Dance is produced by: Nick Wechsler, Gregory Jacobs, Channing Tatum, Reid Carolin, Peter Kiernan

Creed III

Release Date: March 3, 2023

Directed by: Michael B. Jordan

Written By: Keenan Coogler, Zack Baylin, Ryan Coogler.

CAST: Michael B. Jordan, Tessa Thompson, Selenis Leyva, Teofimo López and Saúl Alvarez “El Canelo”

SYNOPSIS:

After the events of Creed II (2018), Adonis “Donnie” Creed is thriving in both his boxing career and family life. When a childhood friend and former boxing prodigy, Damian “Dame” Anderson, resurfaces after serving a long sentence in prison, he is eager to prove that he deserves his shot in the ring. Tessa Thompson who appeared in the first two Creed film returns as Adonis’ wife.

Creed III is produced by Ryan Coogler, Michael B. Jordan and Sylvester Stallone

Scream 6

Release Date: March 10, 2023

Directed by:  Matt Bettinelli-Olpin ,Tyler Gillett

Written by:  James Vanderbilt, Guy Busick, Kevin Williamson

CAST: Jenna Ortega, Melissa Barrera, Courtney Cox, Tony Revolori, Hayden Panettiere

SYNOPSIS:

In the next installment, the survivors of the Ghostface killings leave Woodsboro behind and start a fresh chapter in New York City.  Not much else is known about the future sequel. Jenna Ortega whose hit TV show Wednesday is breaking streaming records on Netflix plays the lead role of Tara Carpenter in Scream 6. Melissa Barrera, the other Latina leas reprises her role from last years Scream. She told Us: “They have us so tight-lipped around here. All I can say is how it feels. I don’t wanna say the wrong word, but it feels scarier…I think people are gonna be surprised.”

Scream 6 is produced by Paul Neinstein, William Sherak, and James Vanderbilt for Paramount Pictures.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3

Release date:  May 5, 2023

Directed by: James Gunn

Written By:  James Gunn, Dan Abnett (comic book) Andy Lanning (comic book)

CAST: Zoe Saldaña, Chris Pratt, Vin Diesel, Dave Bautista, Bradley Cooper, Sylvester Stallone

SYNOPSIS:

American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics superhero team of the same name.Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3:  Still reeling from the loss of Gamora (Saldaña), Peter Quill (Pratt) rallies his team to defend the universe and one of their own – a mission that could mean the end of the Guardians if not successful.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3 is produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, it is the 10th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse 

Release Date:  June 2, 2023

Directed by: Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, Justin Thompson

Written by: Christopher Miller, Phil Lord, David Callaham 

CAST: (voices) Shameik Moore, Oscar Issac, Luna Lauren Velez, Natalie Morales

SYNOPSIS:

Miles Morales returns for the next chapter of the Oscar®-winning Spider-Verse saga, an epic adventure that will transport Brooklyn’s full-time, friendly neighborhood Spider-Man across the Multiverse to join forces with Gwen Stacy and a new team of Spider-People to face off with a villain more powerful than anything they have ever encountered. Miguel O’Hara/Spider-Man 2099, who is once again voiced by Oscar Isaac, is unmasked. Also voices by Luna Lauren Velez, Natalie Morales, and Joaquin Cosio

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is produced by Marvel Entertainment, Sony Pictures Animation, MÁS.

Flamin’ Hot

Release date: June 9, 2023 on Hulu

Directed by: Eva Longoria

Written by: Linda Yvette Chavez, Lewis Colick

CAST: Annie Gonzalez, Jesse García, Emilio Rivera, Pepe Serna.

SYNOPSIS:

Flamin’ Hot is the story of Richard Montañez played by Jesse Garcia, a janitor in the Rancho Cucamonga, California Frito Lay plant who channeled his Mexican-American upbringing, and and his taste in foods to turn Flamin’ Hot Cheetos into a snack that disrupted the food industry and became a global phenomenon. Rising star Annie Gonzalez plays his wife Judy. This is also Eva Longoria’s directorial debut and for which she is already receiving accolades.

Flamin’ Hot is produced by DeVon Franklin’s Franklin Entertainment and Searchlight Pictures.

Asteroid City

Release Date: June 23, 2023

Directed by: Wes Anderson

Written by: Wes Anderson (screenplay), Roman Coppola

CAST: Tom Hanks, Margot Robbie, Tony Revolori, Scarlett Johansson

SYNOPSIS:

The itinerary of a Junior Stargazer convention is spectacularly disrupted by world-changing events.  Asteroid City is an American romantic comedy-drama film written, directed, and produced by Wes Anderson. The cast has been described as being “larger than most other Anderson films that are ensemble in nature.” 

Asteroid City is produced by Empirical Pictures and will be released by Focus Features in the United States for a limited release on June 16, 2023, before opening wide on June 23.

Mission Impossible: Dead of Reckoning – Part One

Release Date:  July , 2023

Directed by: Christopher McQuarrie

Written by: Bruce Geller

Produced by: Tom Cruise and Christopher McQuarrie

CAST:  Tom Cruise, Esai Morales, Mariela Garriga, Rebecca Ferguson,Cary Elwes

SYNOPSIS:

Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One is an upcoming American action spy film written, produced, and directed by Christopher McQuarrie. It is the sequel to Mission: Impossible – Fallout (2018) and is the seventh installment in the Mission: Impossible film series. Esai Morales will appear as the main antagonist in part one and will reprise his role in the sequel Part Two.

Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One is produced by Tom Cruise, David Ellison and Christopher McQuarrie

Haunted Mansion

Release Date: August 11, 2023

Directed by: Justin Simien

Written by: D.V. DeVicentis

Produced by: Dan Lin, Jonathan Eirich. 

Production companies: Walt Disney Pictures, Rideback

CAST: Winona Ryder, Danny DeVito Jaret Leto, Jamie Lee Curtis, Rosario Dawson

SYNOPSIS:

The Haunted Mansion remake follows a single mom named Gabbie, played by Dawson, and her 9-year-old son, who move into a mansion in New Orleans. They quickly discover it’s haunted and turn to a priest (Wilson), a psychic (Curtis), a historian (DeVito), and a paranormal investigator (Stanfield).

The Haunted Mansion is produced by Jonathan Eirich, Dan Lin, Brigham Taylor for Walt Disney Studios

Blue Beetle

Release Date:  August 18, 2023

Directed by: Angel Manuel Soto

Written by:  Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer

CAST: Xolo Maridueña, Bruna Marquezine, George Lopez, Adriana Barraza, Elpidia Carrillo, Damiàn Alcàzar, Raoul Trujillo, Belissa Escobedo, Harvey Guillen, Felipe Eparza and Susan Sarandon.   

SYNOPSIS:  

A Mexican-American teenager Jaime Reyes (Xolo Maridueña) gains super powers when a mysterious scarab binds to his spine and provides him with a powerful suit of blue alien armor.  Blue Beetle is about an American superhero film based on the DC Comics character Jaime Reyes. It is intended to be the 14th film in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU). 

Blue Beetle is produced by DC Studios, Entertainment One, S&K Pictures, and the Safran Company, and set for distribution by Warner Bros. Pictures. 

Kraven the Hunter 

Release Date: October 6, 2023

Directed by: J.C Chandor

Written by: Steve Ditko, Matt Holloway

CAST: Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Russell Crowe, Ariana De Bose

SYNOPSIS:

Russian immigrant Sergei Kravinoff is on a mission to prove that he is the greatest hunter in the world. Ariana De Bose plays a voodoo priestess, Calypso, who utilizes magic potions, and besides being an adversary of Spider-Man, she is also the occasional partner and lover of Kraven.

Kraven the Hunter is produced by: Avi Arad, Matt Tolmach, Amy Pascal for Columbia Pictures and Marvel entertainment

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Emmy Award-nominated actress Tessa Thompson stars in the Netflix film Passing, an adaptation from the 1929 novel of the same title by renowned author Nella Larsen. The black-and-white movie tells the story of two Black women, Irene Redfield (Thompson) and Clare Kendry (Academy Award nominee Ruth Negga), the latter of whom can “pass” and decides to live as white during the height of the Harlem Renaissance in late 1920s New York. After a chance encounter reunites the former childhood friends one summer afternoon, Irene reluctantly allows Clare into her home, upending both of their carefully constructed lives.

The talented Thompson is one of the most prominent Afro-Latino actors in Hollywood–she’s the daughter of New York-based Afro-Panamanian musician Marc Anthony Thompson; her mother is half-Mexican. Thompson has starred in popular films like the Creed movie franchise, the sci-fi action flick Men in Black: International and the superhero blockbuster Avengers: Endgame. Her TV credits include the HBO sci-fi series Westworld and the BBC America dramatic series Copper.

Thompson’s lead in the dramatic film Sylvie’s Love won her an Emmy Award nod this year.

Passing is directed by actress Rebecca Hall, who starred in the Academy Award-winning film Vicky Cristina Barcelona. The film marks Hall’s directorial debut.

Passing premieres Nov. 10.

Featured Photo: ‘Passing’ (Credit: Netflix)

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Movies about a pair of estranged twin sisters, an ailing horse jockey, a traumatized monarch butterfly scientist, and a deaf family are among those with Latino actors in prominent roles in the lineup of the 2021 Sundance Film Festival. The program also includes films from Mexico, Spain, Argentina, and Brazil, and a documentary about actress Rita Moreno.

Unsurprisingly, as most fests since the beginning of the pandemic earlier this year, Sundance will go virtual but also offer in-person screenings in about 30 cities across the United States “public health permitting,” organizers have announced. The 2021 edition offers a slimmed-down film selection program with over 70 features and 50 shorts compared to the 2020 festival. (The previous fest presented 118 features and 74 shorts in 2020. That means about a third fewer films this year. Episodic series were cut from eight to four.)

Standing out in this year’s festival lineup are several films by and about Latinos and featuring Latino talent.

EUGENIO DERBEZ IN CODA
Opening the festival will be CODA, a drama about a teenager who is the only hearing member of a deaf family, loves music, and is torn between family and college dreams away from home. CODA, which stands for child of deaf adults, is directed by Siân Heder, who was determined to feature real deaf actors in her film. The drama stars Emilia Jones as 17-year-old Ruby, Marlee Matlin and Troy Kotsur as her parents, and Daniel Durant as her brother. Mexican actor Eugenio Derbez (Instructions Not Included, Dora and the Lost City of Gold) plays Emilia’s encouraging choirmaster Bernardo Villalobos.

Jockey stars Mexican-American actor Clifton Collins (Capote, Star Trek) playing a seasoned horse jockey facing deteriorating health and the surprising arrival of a young jockey who claims to be his son. This latter role is played by Colombian-American actor Moises Arias (Hannah Montana, Ender’s Game).

Cuban-American sister actresses Alessandra and Anu Messa play identical twins in Superior, meeting again after many years of leading opposite lives. Directed by Erin Vassilopoulos, the feature is a continuation of a Sundance 2015 short with the same title, by the same filmmaker that also featured the Messa sisters.

BUTTERFLIES & PERSONAL TRAUMA
The Mexico-USA co-production Hijo de Monarcas (Son of Monarchs), tells the story of a New York-based lepidopterist who, upon his grandmother’s death, returns to his natal Mexican town nestled in the monarch butterfly forests of the state of Michoacan. Directed by French-Venezuelan filmmaker and biologist Alexis Gambis (The Color of Time), the drama stars Tenoch Huerta Mejía (Narcos: Mexico, Tigers Are Not Afraid). The film won the Alfred P. Sloan Feature Film Prize for portraying scientists in major roles.

In addition to Son of Monarchs, Mexico has another two films at Sundance. Users a documentary about a mother who feels she is competing with computers, electronic cribs, and other technologies in raising her son. The US-Mexico co-production is directed by  Natalia Almada (El Velador, Todo lo Demás). Also the short El Sueño Más Largo Que Recuerdo (The Longest Dream I Remember) which centers on a woman who leaves her hometown to search for her disappeared father. The drama is directed by Carlos Lenin.

Puerto-Rican actress Rita Moreno, who just turned 89 years old, is the subject of the documentary Rita Moreno: The Girl Who Decided to Go For It by director Mariem Perez Riera. The film explores Moreno’s life from her childhood in the Island of Enchantment to her life in New York and covers her accomplishments as an EGOT artist—one of a few who have won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony awards.

YOUTHS IN LAW ENFORCEMENT
Another documentary, At The Ready, follows a group of high school students in El Paso who aspire to work in law enforcement and immigration. The Mexican-American youths join a criminal justice club and discover the complexities of careers, personal values, family, and community. The film is directed by Maisie Crow.

FROM ARGENTINA, SPAIN & COLOMBIA
There are also several films from other Latin American and Spanish-speaking countries.

Argentina’s El Perro Que No Calla (The Dog Who Wouldn’t Be Quiet) tells the story of a man who faces neighbors complaining about his dog’s barking and employers forbidding pets at work. Shot in black-and-white, the feature is directed by Ana Katz, who competed at Sundance back in 2016 with Mi Amiga del Parque (My Friend From the Park), winning the screenwriting award in world cinema dramatic competition.

Representing Spain is El Planeta (The Planet), a comedy about a broke mother-daughter duo that tries to live the good life on credit, lies, and ingenious shopping that involves makeup sampling at the mall and buying returnable items. It is directed by Amalia Ulman.

In the shorts category, Colombia competes with the futuristic Yoruga in which a lonely old man pays a visit to Yoruga, one of the last animals on Earth; while Brazil’s Unliveable tells the story of a mother who searches for her missing daughter Roberta, a trans woman. 

MIXING LIVE ACTION & ANIMATION
There is a Latin American episodic series that stands out at Sundance 2021. Argentina’s 4 Feet High is a mix of live-action and animation that tells the story of Juana, a spunky 17-year-old in a wheelchair who explores her sexuality but is ashamed of her body. The six-episode series deals with school life, friendship, fear, failure, and politics. Rosario Perazolo, who is wheelchair-bound, and María Belén Poncio co-wrote and co-directed 4 Feet High.

Other Sundance films featuring Latino talent include the racial drama Passing, starring Tessa Thompson (Creed, Man in Black: International) and the rom-com Together Together, starring Julio Torres (Los Espookys) who has written for Saturday Night Live in recent years.

In addition to the virtual screenings, Sundance will also show films in many venues scattered throughout the country, from arthouse cinemas and drive-ins to pop-up movie theaters. These include the parking lot of the Rosebowl Stadium in Pasadena, California, a museum in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and one movie theatre in Park City, Utah—the ski resort that has been the festival’s home since 1981. The online film screening program is available on the festival website, but physical movie screenings details are yet to be posted. 

Other cities with in-person screenings include Austin, Dallas, Denver, Houston, Honolulu, Key West, New Orleans, and Tucson. 

Considered the preeminent independent film fest of the U.S., and one of the most important in the world, the Sundance Film Festival is organized by the nonprofit Sundance Institute. 

Festival organizers acknowledge the challenges facing the fest during the current pandemic.

“Togetherness has been an animating principle here at the Sundance Institute as we’ve worked to reimagine the Festival for 2021, because there is no Sundance without our community,” says actor and filmmaker Robert Redford, who is the Sundance Institute founder and president. But as the coronavirus epidemic has limited public gatherings, Redford explains that fest organizers had to make “room for imaginative new possibilities in a new online format.” 

“Of course, the pandemic year demanded adaptation,” says Keri Putnam, Sundance Institute’s executive director. “On a deeper level, we also recognize the urgency of supporting independent storytellers at a time of great upheaval in the film and media fields.” She described the upcoming fest edition as “fiercely independent” and able to “reach people everywhere” via its new streaming platform.

For tickets, passes, and more information, visit https://festival.sundance.org. 

Top Featured Photo: Adolpho Veloso/Courtesy of Sundance Institute

Check out the video below of what Sundance has been and who have been at the fest in recent years.

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