Ultra Violet & Black Scorpion revolves around a U.S. Latino family.  It’s about superheroes, family with they their beautiful culture at the centerpiece.  The cast is headed by Scarlett Estevez (Bunk’s Lucifer) who plays Violet Rodriguez AKA  Ultra Violet and her Uncle Black Scorpion played by J.R. Villareal (United We Fall).

After reading the first script of the show, Leyva’s mind raced back to the 90s films he grew up watching. “I automatically thought of the Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, 1989 Batman,” he explained.  “All movies that I idolized, all with a specific look.”   

Leyva went in for his first interview with Disney with his ideas on how he would shoot the show.  “I turn words into pictures. I told them that this was something that had to be stylized, single-camera as much as possible.”  

After shooting UltraViolet, he was off to Atlanta to shoot a project for the multi-hyphenate, entertainment disrupter, Tyler Perry.  Although Leyva has shot several movies of the week and several TV shows including Crackle’s The Oath and Deadly Affair, working with the Disney Channel and now with Perry could prove to be the breakthrough Leyva has been waiting for.  Shooting another project for Perry, in the works could be the clue.

“I just returned from Atlanta where I shot something for Academy Award-winning filmmaker Tyler Perry that was really incredible.” Leyva said but when asked about it, he had to explain, “I signed an NDA so I can’t talk about it.”

However, he did share the news that he felt that he had “passed the test” because he was asked to collaborate on a second feature film with Perry, which is in the works, and this one he could talk about.  “We’re up for a feature film for Netflix.  It’s a big one, a suspense thriller,” Leyva recounted excitedly.  “I am already in talks with the studio.”

Leyva’s is after all the ASC’s American Rising Star.

CAST:  Marianna Burelli as Nina, Violet’s mother; Juan Alfonso as Juan Carlos, Violet’s father, Brandon Rossel as Santiago, Violet’s brother; Zelia Ankrum as Maya Miller-Martinez, Violet’s best friend; Bryan Blanco as Luis León, Violet’s goody-two-shoes classmate

The post Thru the Lens of Rafael Leyva, ‘Ultra Violet & Black Scorpion’ first appeared on .

Villareal (Akeela and the Bee) will play Cruz De La Vega, a luchador wrestling coach with the secret superhero identity Black Scorpion in Disney Channel’s new live-action comedy series Ultra Violet & Black Scorpion. The other name in the title refers to character Violet Rodriguez, a teenager chosen by a magical luchador mask to be a superhero, just like her uncle De La Vega. Rodriguez/Ultra Violet is played by Scarlett Estevez (Bunk’d). 

De La Vega replaces Blue Demon Jr., a famous Mexican wrestler. While Disney did not explain the change, media outlets have reported the ousted luchador was accused of domestic violence just months after the series had cast him in the superhero role early in the year. The show was originally titled Ultra Violet & Blue Demon. The luchador was also dropped as an executive producer.

According to the newspaper El Heraldo de Mexico, Blue Demon Jr.’s wife Mónica Carrillo publicly accused the wrestler of spousal abuse over two decades of marriage. The publication reported Carrillo filed a complaint with authorities. The woman also said she received death threats after going public with her story on the YouTube show No Chisme Like, the newspaper reported.

The “luchador enmascarado” also got involved in politics after being cast in Ultra Violet & Blue Demon Jr. He was also reportedly running for a mayoral seat in one of Mexico City’s 16 municipalities.  

Villarreal is a budding Texas-born actor best known for his role as Javier Mendez in the 2006 family/school drama Akeelah and the Bee, starring alongside KeKe Palmer and Angela Bassett. He was later featured in the Millennium Film action-drama Bobby Z along with Paul Walker and Laurence Fishburne. His credits include indie drama Magic City Memoirs, executive produced by Academy Award-nominated actor Andy Garcia, and Paramount’s comedy Ghost Team One. Other credits include guest appearances on FX’s The Bridge, Fox’s House M.D., Lifetime’s Strong Medicine and CBS’s Ghost Whisperer as well as mainstream series like Cold Case, Without a Trace and CSI: Miami.

Ultra Violet & Black Scorpion also star Marianna Burelli (Paramedicos) as Violet’s mother, Nina; Juan Alfonso (American Princess) as Violet’s father, Juan Carlos; Brandon Rossel (Fast Layne) as Violet’s brother, Santiago; Zelia Ankrum (Les Moore) as Violet’s best friend, Maya Miller-Martinez; and Bryan Blanco (Screwball) as Violet’s classmate, Luis León.

The series also names two new executive producers, Eric Garcia and Leo Chu, who also serve as showrunners. Also executive producing is Joe Nussbaum in addition to previously confirmed Dan Hernandez and Benji Samit, a pair that collaborated in Pokémon Detective Pikachu.

Featured Photo: Disney’s ‘Ultra Violet & Black Scorpion’ stars Scarlett Estevez as Violet Rodriguez and J.R. Villarreal as Cruz De La Vega. (Credit: Disney/Brian Roedel)

The post J.R. Villarreal Cast in Disney’s ‘Ultra Violet & Black Scorpion’ first appeared on .