Netflix to Globally Premiere Felipe Esparza’s “Raging Fool” Comedy Special in February

Posted on December 16, 2024 by Tom Castaneda

Felipe Esparza is preparing for a rager…

The 48-year-old Mexican stand-up comedian and actor is set to release his next Netflix special, Raging Fool, globally on February 11.

In Raging Fool, Esparza explores the trials and tribulations of navigating complicated family dynamics, marriage, cultural divides, infidelity, and more.

The special is his second for Netflix, on the heels of 2020’s Bad Decisions, which has two versions available to stream, in English and Spanish.

Taped in front of a sold-out crowd at the Crest Theatre in Sacramento, the special is written and performed by Esparza, who executive-produced alongside his wife and long-time producing partner, Lesa ODaniel-Esparza, as well as Judi Marmel and Jordan Levy, in conjunction with 800 Pound Gorilla Productions.

ODaniel-Esparza also directed Esparza’s new hour.

Also known for specials including They’re Not Gonna Laugh at You (currently streaming on Prime Video) and Translate This (HBO), Esparza recently announced the extension of his At My Leisure tour with spring dates, which will see him hitting major cities across North America beginning in January.

Rising to fame as the 2010 winner of Last Comic Standing, he’s also appeared in recurring roles on series including Superstore, The Eric Andre Show, Gentefied, Victor and Valentino, and Universal Basic Guys.

His film credits include Guest House with Pauly Shore, Daddy Daughter Trip with Rob Schneider, Blue Beetle with Xolo Maridueña and George Lopez and You People with Eddie Murphy.

Currently working on material for his fifth special, Esparza is also the host of What’s Up Fool?, which has held steady of late as one of the top comedy podcasts of the last 10 years.

George Lopez Preparing New Hour-Long Comedy Special for Prime Video

Posted on September 12, 2024 by Tom Castaneda

George Lopez is preparing to bring the laughs…

The 63-year-old Mexican American stand-up comedian and actor is preparing a new hour-long comedy special to premiere on Prime Video.

Amazon MGM Studios and Travieso Productions are producing Lopez’s new hour, which is his first since We’ll Do It for Half for Netflix in 2020.

Taping at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on September 27 and 28, as part of Lopez’s “ALLLRIIIIGHHTTT! Comedy” tour, its premiere date will be announced down the road.

Breaking ground for Latino comics in a decades-long career spanning television, film, stand-up, and late-night, Lopez has previously put out four comedy specials with HBO — The Wall (2017), It’s Not Me, It’s You (2012), Tall, Dark and Chicano (2009), and America’s Mexican (2007) — earning Grammy nominations for the latter two. His stand-up output also includes Why You Crying?, an acclaimed comedy concert for Showtime, and a number of other comedy albums.

Coming to the attention of many with the groundbreaking hit sitcom George Lopez, which he co-created, wrote, produced and starred on for ABC, he’s most recently exec produced and starred opposite his daughter Mayan Lopez on NBC’s sitcom Lopez vs Lopez, a fictionalized look at their real-life relationship, which returns for its third season on October 18.

He also exec produced and starred in TV Land’s semi-autobiographical sitcom Lopez, which ran for two seasons, and co-created and starred on FX’s Saint George.

At one point hosting his own TBS late-night talker, Lopez Tonight, Lopez last summer joined the DC Extended Universe with Angel Manuel Soto’s Blue Beetle.

Other recent feature projects include Snoop Dogg’s Amazon MGM sports comedy, The Underdoggs, as well as the indie holiday comedy How the Gringo Stole Christmas.

Harvey Guillén to Star In & Produce the Bromance Comedy “That Friend”

Posted on July 26, 2024 by Tom Castaneda

Harvey Guillén has made a new friend…

The 34-year-old Mexican American actor will star in and produce That Friend, a bromance comedy about the dynamics of friendship and growing up.

The film marks the feature directorial debut of writer-directors Will Sterling and Alex Wall.

In the upcoming feature, Guillén portrays Paul, that one friend we all have whose invitation for “one drink” seems harmless but the next thing you know, you’re drunk on a Tuesday, swaying in your kitchen eating dry top ramen out of the bag and wishing you hadn’t just sent that text. Henry is just trying to have a romantic weekend in Palm Springs with his new girlfriend Penny until Paul crashes their trip. And when Paul’s pack of drug-laced cigarettes disappear into the hands of a stranger, the night really takes a turn.

Production for That Friend is slated to begin in December, with Ryan Tillotson and the L.A.-based Straw Hut Media producing alongside Guillén.

Guillén is best known for his acclaimed breakout role in FX’s modern-day vampire mockumentary What We Do in the Shadows, which recently previewed its sixth and final season at San Diego Comic-Con. The final season is set to premiere on October 21.

In the show from Jemaine Clement, based and his and Taika Waititi’s 2014 New Zealand film of the same name, Guillén portrays Guillermo de la Cruz, the long-suffering familiar (or servant) of vampire Nandor the Relentless (Kayvan Novak), who by the fifth season, has fulfilled his wish of becoming a vampire in his own right.

Guillén has also appeared on series like Reacher, Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist and The Magicians, while lending his voice to high-profile animated projects across film and television, including Harley Quinn, Kung Fu Panda: The Dragon Knight, The Garfield Movie and Puss in Boots: The Last Wish.

In film, the actor’s other credits include Blue Beetle, Strays, I’m Totally Fine, Werewolves Within, Truth or Dare and The Internship.

Up next, the actor will be seen in Mike Flanagan’s Stephen King adaptation The Life of Chuck, world premiering at the Toronto Film Festival, New Line’s sci-fi thriller Companion and more.

Adriana Barraza to Star in Prime Video’s Comic Book Series “El Gato”

Posted on June 11, 2024 by Tom Castaneda

Adriana Barraza has found a purr-fect role…

The 68-year-old Mexican Oscar-nominated actress has landed a series regular role in Prime Video’s comic book series with the working title El Gato.

Barraza joins new cast addition Sarah Jones and previously announced leads Diego Boneta and Lorenza Izzo.

Based on the comic series El Gato Negro by Richard Dominguez, El Gato follows Frank Guerrero (Boneta), who returns home to Mexico after the death of his father and finds himself neck-deep in a nest of vipers – his estranged family – who are vying for control of his father’s business empire. But Frank’s grief is interrupted when he learns his only inheritance, a seemingly worthless parcel of land on the border, sits atop the lair of a famous costumed vigilante — his father, “El Gato.” Now, Frank is in the crosshairs. To survive, he’ll have to solve mysteries decades in the making and unravel the truth about his father’s connections to a modern-day terror plot.

Barraza will play Alma, who, in the 1970s, discovered her husband was living a double life: moonlighting as a costumed vigilante: El Gato Negro. Alma worked side by side with him for years, providing operational support for his missions. She is careful with her words, and vault-like in the keeping of secrets. Alma thought her old life was behind her, but now widowed, she finds herself pulled back into a world of masks. In the series, she will form an unlikely partnership with our hero, Frank – her husband’s bastard son. It will test the openness of her heart. This is Alma, back in the saddle for one last ride.

Jones will play Ashley, a CIA field agent working as our hero Frank’s handler. Ash is good at reading people. She’s a fast-talking cynic with something to prove. Ash believes the family agricultural business at the center of our series is a front for a criminal enterprise. As she develops Frank as a CIA asset, she will find herself dangerously drawn to him. She is well-trained, physically capable, and seemingly born for this. But it’s a deadly game she’s playing, and if she wants to survive this, she’ll need to watch her back.

Eric Carrasco created the series and will co-showrun with Turi Meyer and Alfredo Septién.

El Gato is being produced by MGM Television, a division of Amazon MGM Studios.

Barraza recently celebrated 50 years in the entertainment industry. She is best known for her collaborations with director Alejandro González Iñárritu in Amores Perros (1999) and Babel (2006), on which she made history as one of only six Mexican actresses to ever receive an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress.

Most recently, she was a supporting lead in the DC Comics/Warner Bros feature film Blue Beetle opposite Xolo Mariduena and directed by Angel Manuel Soto.

In August, Barraza will star in the indie feature My Penguin Friend opposite Jean Reno.

NBC Gives Series Order to “Happy’s Place,” Starring Belissa Escobedo

Posted on May 8, 2024 by Tom Castaneda

Belissa Escobedo has found her happy(’s) place…

NBC has given a series order to Happy’s Place, starring the 25-year-old Latina actress and Reba McEntire.

The comedy sees McEntire play Bobbie, who inherits her father’s restaurant and is less than thrilled to discover that she has a new business partner in the half-sister she never knew she had.

In addition to McEntire and Escobedo, the multi-cam series also stars Melissa Peterman, Pablo Castelblanco, Tokala Black Elk and Rex Linn.

Writer Kevin Abbott executive produces with Michael Hanel, Mindy Schultheis, Julie Abbott and McEntire.

It’s produced by Universal Television.

Happy’s Place, which reunites McEntire with members of her Reba team, was the first pilot of the season to be ordered, in January.

Escobedo’s previous credits include Blue Beetle, Hocus Pocus 2, The Baker and the Beauty and American Horror Stories.

Belissa Escobedo to Star in Reba McEntire’s Still-Untitled NBC Comedy Pilot

Posted on March 18, 2024 by Tom Castaneda

Belissa Escobedo has lined up her next project…

The 25-year-old Latina actress and Blue Beetle star has been cast in Reba McEntire in her as-yet-untitled NBC multi-cam comedy pilot.

The project is produced by Universal Television, a division of Universal Studio Group.

The pilot follows Bobbie (McEntire) who inherits her father’s restaurant and is less than thrilled to discover that she has a new business partner in the half-sister she never knew she had.

Escobedo stars as Bobbie’s sister Isabella, an enthusiastic 20-something, who has studied psychology and loves to analyze people. She is thrilled to start working at the tavern and is full of “great” ideas about how to bring it to life.

Escobedo’s star continues to rise following two major roles in DC Entertainment/Warner Bros’ Blue Beetle, where he portrayed the titular character’s (played by Xolo Maridueña) sister Milagro, and Disney’s Hocus Pocus 2 where she popped off the screen—no easy task when you’re starring opposite Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy, who returned as the Sanderson sisters.

Additional credits include the ABC dramedy The Baker And The Beauty alongside Carlos Gomez, Lisa Vidal and Victor Rasuk; Ryan Murphy’s FX anthology series American Horror Stories, the Catherine Hardwicke-directed Quibi limited series Don’t Look Deeper and the American High films Sex Appeal (Hulu) and Sid Is Dead.

George Lopez to Serve as a Presenter at This Year’s Golden Globes Awards Show

Posted on January 3, 2024 by Tom Castaneda

George Lopez is readying for his golden hour…

The 62-year-old Mexican American stand-up comedian and actor appears on the first list of presenters for Sunday’s 81st Golden Globe Awards.

Lopez, who currently stars on television in Lopez vs. Lopez and recently appeared on the big screen in Blue Beetle, will be joined by Amanda Seyfried, Angela Bassett, Gabriel Macht and Patrick J. Adams, Julia Garner, Justin Hartley, Michelle Yeoh and Will Ferrell.

Jo Koy is hosting the Golden G lobes, which will honor the year’s best in motion pictures and television. The ceremony will air beginning at 8:00 pm ET/5 p.m. PT live on CBS and streaming on Paramount+.

More presenters will be announced.

Among this year’s Golden Globe nominees in 26 categories, 2023’s box office champ Barbie from Warner Bros leads all films with nine, followed by Universal’s Oppenheimer with eight and Apple’s Killers of the Flower Moon and Searchlight’s Poor Things with seven apiece. In the TV races, HBO’s final go-round with Succession has nine noms, the most-ever for a series, scoring mentions in all categories in which it was eligible.

This year’s Globes — it’s first time back on CBS since 1982 — include two new awards categories: Cinematic and Box Office Achievement in Motion Pictures and Best Performance in Stand-Up Comedy on Television.

Longtime Globes producer Dick Clark Productions is planning, hosting and producing this year’s awards after the Globes’ assets, rights and properties were acquired by Dick Clark Productions and Eldridge from the Hollywood Foreign Press Association back in June.

Xolo Maridueña to Star in the Eif Rivera-Directed Film “Killing Castro”

Posted on December 4, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Xolo Maridueña is killin’ it in Hollywood…

The 22-year-old Mexican, Cuban and Ecuadorian American actor and Blue Beetle star will star in the film Killing Castro.

Eif Rivera will direct the film from a script by Leon Hendrix, Thomas DeGrezia and Colin Bateman. This will be Rivera’s first feature film.

In addition to Maridueña, who rose to acclaim in Cobra Kai, will star alongside

Al Pacino, Mexican superstar Diego Boneta, KiKi Layne, Alexander Ludwig, Ron Livingston, Kendrick Sampson, Nicole Beharie, Logan Marshall Green and Titus Welliver in the film.

Based on true events, the film is set in 1960. Shortly after winning the Cuban revolution, Fidel Castro travels to New York City to deliver his first speech to the United Nations. When met with hostility at his original hotel, Castro meets Malcolm X who invites him to stay at famed Hotel Theresa in Harlem. With the eyes of the world watching, a rookie undercover FBI agent originally assigned to investigate Malcolm X suddenly becomes the FBI’s most valuable asset, and is tasked with keeping Castro from being eliminated by the CIA and the Italian mafia, by any means necessary.

Killing Castro will be produced by Romulus Entertainment’s Brad Feinstein, along with Christina Weiss Lurie of Fourth and Twenty-Eight Films. Romulus will also finance. Principal photography will take place in Newark, NJ.

“I am honored to be part of telling such an important story that is a piece of history which was largely unknown,” said Feinstein. “Killing Castro perfectly encapsulates the type of stories we strive to tell at Romulus Entertainment, stories that do more than entertain audiences, but create thought-provoking diverse content that bring to light the complexities of real life. We are looking forward to working with the incredible cast led by the inimitable Eif Rivera.”

Rivera is known for directing BMF, and TV shows including Force and Power Book III: Raising Kanan.

“I am excited to bring to life this compelling true story with the help of my remarkable cast and formidable producing team at Romulus Entertainment,” Rivera said.

Diego Luna & Gael García Bernal to Executive Produce “The Boys” Offshoot, “The Boys: Mexico”

Posted on November 28, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Diego Luna and Gael García Bernal are bringing the boys south of the border…

The 43-year-old Mexican actor, director and producer and the 44-year-old Mexican Golden Globe-winning actor and producer will executive produce and possibly appear in acting roles in The Boys: Mexico, a new series offshoot of The Boys from Blue Beetle writer Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer.

Details regarding the premise of the series are being kept under wraps.

A search is currently underway for a co-showrunner to join creator, writer and executive producer Dunnet-Alcocer, who is now working on the script.

The team behind The Boys: Mexico, which will be shot in the Latin American country, is working on budgets for the new series and they have yet to begin casting, sources said.

The Mexico-set offshoot comes from the main creative auspices behind the other series in The Boys franchise, the mothership’s developer Eric Kripke and his Kripke Enterprises, Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg’s Point Grey Pictures, Neil H. Moritz’s Original Film, Sony Pictures Television and Amazon MGM Studios. Loreli Alba is expected to oversee for Point Grey.

The Boys, based on the New York Times best-selling comic by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, shares a fun and irreverent take on what happens when superheroes—who are as popular as celebrities, as influential as politicians, and as revered as gods—abuse their superpowers rather than use them for good. Intent on stopping the corrupt superheroes, The Boys, a group of vigilantes, continue their heroic quest to expose the truth about The Seven and Vought—the multibillion-dollar conglomerate that manages the superheroes and covers up their dirty secrets. It’s the seemingly powerless against the super-powerful.

Following the breakout success of The Boys, which is headed to Season 4, two spinoff series were released in 2023: the animated The Boys Presents: Diabolical, which premiered in March, and the college-set spinoff Gen V, which recently concluded its first season and has been renewed for Season 2.

The Boys: Mexico is the latest project hailing from rising star Dunnet-Alcocer, who penned the screenplay for the Warner Bros. Pictures/DC Studios superhero feature film, Blue Beetle. Most recently, he wrote the screenplay for Sony’s El Muerto from director Jonás Cuarón. The Queretaro, Mexico native also wrote and executive produced Miss Bala in 2019. Additionally, Dunnet-Alcocer is attached as screenwriter of the Universal Pictures’ reimagination of Scarface.

Luna and García Bernal are veteran actors whose careers exploded following their collaboration in the hit 2001 Spanish-language feature Y Tu Mamá También directed by Alfonso Cuarón. They have reunited multiple times since then including in Rudo y Cursi (2008) and Casa de Mi Padre (2012).

Most recently Luna joined the Star Wars universe in the Disney+ TV series Andor, a prequel to Star Wars: Rogue One.

García Bernal most recently starred in the Amazon bio-drama Cassandro portraying the titular gay wrestler born Saúl Armendáriz.

The longtime friends and collaborators became producing partners in 2018 under their La Corriente del Golfo banner. Recent projects they produced include the aforementioned Cassandro and the series Pan y Circo hosted by Luna, both for Amazon.

Warner Bros. Pictures’ “Blue Beetle,” Starring Xolo Maridueña, to Begin Streaming on Max Next Week

Posted on November 11, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Xolo Maridueña is feelin’ blue to Max.

Warner Bros. Pictures’ Blue Beetle, starring the 22-year-old Mexican, Cuban & Ecuadorian American actor, will make its streaming debut on Max next Friday, November 17.

The film, directed by Ángel Manuel Soto, stars Maridueña in the title role, as well as his alter ego, Jaime Reyes.

In the film recent college grad Reyes returns home full of aspirations for his future, only to find that home is not quite as he left it. As he searches to find his purpose in the world, fate intervenes when Jaime unexpectedly finds himself in possession of an ancient relic of alien biotechnology: the Scarab.

When the Scarab suddenly chooses Jaime to be its symbiotic host, he is bestowed with an incredible suit of armor capable of extraordinary and unpredictable powers, forever changing his destiny as he becomes the Blue Beetle.

Soto directs from a screenplay by Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer, based on characters from DC. John Rickard and Zev Foreman are producing, with Walter Hamada, Galen Vaisman and Garrett Grant serving as executive producers.

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