Antonio Banderas to Star in Sony Affirm’s Untitled, Nativity-Themed Holiday Musical

Antonio Banderas is preparing to spread holiday cheer…

The 62-year-old Spanish actor will star in Sony Affirm’s upcoming untitled holiday musical centered around the Nativity.

Antonio BanderasBanderas, who will star as King Herod, will appear opposite Fiona Palomo as Mary and Milo Manheim as Joseph.

The film is currently in production with Monarch Media on the coast of Spain for a November 10 theatrical release.

Music producer Adam Anders is making his feature directorial debut and wrote the script along with Peter Barsocchini and wrote the music with Nikki Anders and Peer Astrom.

Here’s the logline: A young woman carrying an unimaginable responsibility. A young man torn between love and honor. A jealous king who will stop at nothing to keep his crown. This live-action Christmas musical celebration for the entire family, weaves classic Christmas melodies into new pop songs in a music-infused retelling of the timeless story of Mary and Joseph and the birth of Jesus.

Filling out the cast are Moriah, Stephanie Gil, 4x Grammy award-winning Joel Smallbone from the pop duo FOR KING + COUNTRY as King Herod’s son, Antipater and multiple Grammy award-winning Lecrae as Gabriel, Rizwan Manji as Gaspar, Geno Seagers as Balthazar, and Omid Djalili as Melchior.

“This joyous and fresh take on Mary and Joseph’s journey, combined with infectious music and insanely passionate vision of Adam Anders made this an undeniable fit for Affirm Films and Sony Pictures to come alongside and help turn this amazing story into a Christmas classic that will resound with young children, families, teens and adults” said Rich Peluso, EVP and Head of Affirm Films.

“We’ve been amazed at Adam’s ability to tell the widely known story of Mary, Joseph and a jealous king in a way that feels fresh and contemporary, like you’ve never heard it before.” says Alan Powell of Monarch Media.

Prince Royce to Star in Fox’s Live Religious Musical Event “The Passion”

Prince Royce is taking his Passion to a live audience…

The 26-year-old Dominican American singer has been tapped to star in Fox‘s live religious musical event The Passion, the network has revealed.

Prince Royce

The multi-platinum recording artist is set to play the disciple Peter.

Hosted and narrated by Tyler Perry, The Passion tells the 2,000-year-old story of the last hours of Jesus Christ’s life on earth through a variety of popular music, sung by the cast including Trisha Yearwood and Royce, and arranged by executive producer Adam Anders (Glee).

Set in modern-day, the event follows the dramatic and inspirational story of Jesus of Nazareth, as he presides over the Last Supper, and then is betrayed by Judas, put on trial by Pontius Pilate, convicted, crucified and resurrected. As Mary follows her son into Jerusalem, she already has witnessed Jesus struggle with opposition from other religious leaders, but bolsters him with the boundless depth of a mother’s love. Peter, meanwhile, remains one of Jesus’ closest confidantes, but his loyalty will be sternly tested.

The event will unfold live at some of New Orleans’ most iconic locations and feature a procession of hundreds of people carrying a 20-foot, illuminated cross from outside the Superdome to the live stage at Woldenburg Park on the banks of the Mississippi River.

Royce released his debut album in 2010 and saw it go triple-platinum. He has scored 11 No. 1 hits on the Latin and Tropical charts, won 20 Latin Billboard Awards and earned eight Latin Grammy nominations. His music has collected more than 1 billion online streams.