Gina Rodriguez Officially Signs on to Star in the Remake of Mexican Film “Miss Bala”

Posted on May 16, 2017 by Tom Castaneda

Gina Rodriguez has landed a royal role…

The 32-year-old Puerto Rican actress and Jane the Virgin star has officially signed on to star in Sony Pictures’ Catherine Hardwicke-directed drama Miss Bala, a remake of the Mexican entry for the Best Foreign Film Oscar in 2011. Rodriguez was considered a frontrunner for the role.

Rodriguez stars Gloria Meyer who, after her friend Suzu goes missing in Tijuana, finds herself a pawn in a dangerous game being played by the CIA, the DEA and a charismatic young crime boss.

Cordova will play Lino, a master manipulator and highly charismatic survivor who has gotten as far as he has through ballsy plays for power.

Meanwhile, Ismael Cruz Córdova has landed a role as Lino, a master manipulator and highly charismatic survivor who has gotten as far as he has through ballsy plays for power.

Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer is on board to adapt the script, which was written by original director Gerard Naranjo and Mauricio Katz.

Rodriguez recently wrapped the third season to her hit CW telenovela Jane the Virgin, which is set to return for a fourth. The Golden Globe winner is set to lend her voice to Netflix’s cartoon reboot Carman Sandiego, and will next be heard in Fox’s children’s story adaption Ferdinand and Sony’s animated Christmas film The Star, both slated for release this year.

Cordova’s credits include Ang Lee’s war drama Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk and recurring roles on Season 4 of Showtime’s Ray Donovan as well as ABC’s The Catch.

Rodriguez Being Courted to Star in Catherine Hardwicke’s “Miss Bala” Remake

Posted on April 5, 2017 by Tom Castaneda

Gina Rodriguez may have found her next crowning project…

Catherine Hardwicke is in talks to direct Miss Bala, the remake of the Mexican film co-written and directed by Gerardo Naranjo, with the 32-year-old Puerto Rican actress and Jane the Virgin star being courted for the leading role.

Miss Bala, which earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Film, centers on a beauty pageant contestant who witnesses the brutality of a drug gang and is dragged into their dangerous business.

Kevin Misher and Pablo Cruz are producing, Andy Berman is executive producer. Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer is adapting the script by Naranjo and Mauricio Katz.

Rodriguez, who earned a Golden Globe for her performance in Jane the Virgin, rose to acclaim after starring the indie film Filly Brown. Her other film roles include Deepwater Horizon and Enter the Dangerous Mind.

Sigman to Star in CBS’ “S.W.A.T.” Pilot, Based on the 2011 Crime Drama

Posted on February 14, 2017 by Tom Castaneda

Stephanie Sigman is about to get tactical…

The Mexican-American actress, who rose to acclaim in the 2011 crime drama film Miss Bala, will star in CBS’ S.W.A.T. reboot.

Sigman is the first cast member to sign onto the reboot, which is based on the movie of the same name.

The pilot follows a locally born and bred S.W.A.T. lieutenant who is torn between loyalty to the streets and duty to his fellow officers when he’s tasked to run a highly-trained unit that’s the last stop for solving crimes in Los Angeles. Sources say CBS is nearing a deal with an actor for the lead lieutenant role.

Sigman will play Jessica, who’s described as ambitious and fastidious, and has earned her high rank at S.W.A.T. headquarters.

The “S.W.A.T.” pilot was written by Aaron Thomas and will be directed by Justin Lin.

Sony Pictures Television and CBS Television Studios are behind the hourlong drama.

The series is based on the 2003 film, which starred Samuel L. Jackson, Colin Farrell, LL Cool J, Michelle Rodriguez, and Jeremy Renner. That movie was based on the 1970s series, produced by Aaron Spelling, which ran for two seasons on ABC.

“S.W.A.T.” is the latest project for Sigman, who’s been in high demand ever since her scene-stealing role in the 2015 Daniel Craig movie Spectre. She also starred in the first season of Netflix’s Narcos, and appeared in a few episodes of ABC’s anthology series American Crime from John Ridley. This is the second consecutive pilot season that Sigman has been cast in a lead role, following Ridley’s ABC detective drama, Presence, which ultimately was not greenlit to series.

Up next for the actress is the sequel to the hit horror movie Annabelle 2.

Naranjo Rounds Out the Cast for His Untitled English-Language Debut Film

Posted on February 9, 2014 by Tom Castaneda

Gerardo Naranjo is rounding out the cast for his next project…

The Mexican Miss Bala filmmaker has cast Dakota Fanning, Harry Potter’s Frank Dillan and Shameless’ Jeremy Allen White, as well X-Men: First Class’ Zoe Kravitz and Caleb Landry Jones, for his untitled English-language debut.

Fanning will star in the music-based film as Viena, a roadie on a journey of self-discovery while on tour with a punk band in the 1980s.

The project was first announced in November at the Baja International Film Festival where the deal came together in Los Cabos, Mexico.

The film will be produced by Verisimilitude’s Hunter Gray and Alex Orlovsky with Lola Pictures’ Chris Ramirez.

Naranjo is directing the film from his own script.

Filming gets underway in Nevada late next month.

Naranjo May Direct Dakota Fanning in His English-Language Debut

Posted on November 17, 2013 by Tom Castaneda

Gerardo Naranjo may soon be directing Dakota Fanning in his English-language debut.

The 19-year-old actress has been attached to star in the Mexican filmmaker’s untitled coming-of-age story, which Naranjo will direct from his own screenplay.

The film, Naranjo’s English-language debut, is set to begin filming in February.

It centers on Viena (Fanning), a roadie who’s on a journey of self-discovery and survival as part of a punk band’s convoy, traveling through America circa the 1980s.

Alex Orlovsky and Hunter Gray will produce and co-finance the film through their Verisimilitude production banner. The new film re-teams the pair with Naranjo after the trio collaborated on the helmer’s Voy a explotar.

Naranjo rose to acclaim after directing the critically acclaimed Spanish-language film Miss Bala, starring Stephanie Sigman.

He most recently shot the pilot for FX’s Texas-Mexico border-based series The Bridge, starring Demian Bichir.

FX Release Mysterious Teaser Videos for its Bichir-Starrer “The Bridge”

Posted on April 21, 2013 by Tom Castaneda

Demián Bichir’s first starring role on American television is gaining plenty of buzz…

FX recently released the first footage for its upcoming drama series The Bridge, which stars the 49-year-old Mexican actor.

The four mysterious teasers — titled “Ember,” “Escape,” “Red” and “Crossroads” — showcase little more than haunting imagery from the drama about two detectives (Bichir and Diane Kruger) who must work together to hunt down a serial killer operating on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border.

The series, set on the border between El Paso, Texas, and Juarez, Mexico, is an adaptation of the international hit Bron, which took place at the Denmark-Sweden border and kicks off when a body is dumped on the bridge that spans the El Paso-Juarez border and follows Ruiz (Bichir) and his American counterpart, Detective Sonya Cross (Kruger) as they tackle the case together.

The 13-episode series hails from Homeland writer/executive producer Meredith Stiehm and Hawaii Five-0 producer Elwood Reid.

The pilot, which was shot in Los Angeles and El Paso, was directed by Miss Bala helmer Gerardo Naranjo.

Production is under way for a July premiere.

Cardona Cast in “Covert Affairs” Recurring Role

Posted on March 7, 2013 by Tom Castaneda

Manolo Cardona is going on a covert operation…

The 35-year-old Colombian actor and telenovela star has landed a multi-episode recurring role on USA‘s spy drama Covert Affairs, which stars Piper Parabo.

Cardona, who was cast in the network’s untitled pilot starring Miss Bala star Stephanie Sigman, will portray Teo Braga, an enigmatic Colombian rebel leader. Described as “brilliant and brooding,” he harbors secrets about his past that will greatly affect Annie (Parabo), Auggie and the other members of the CIA.

The stint reunites Cardona with Parabo, his co-star in Beverly Hills Chihuahua.

Cardona’s next film will be Border Run.

Cardona Joins the Cast of USA’s Unititled Miami-Based Pilot

Posted on December 20, 2012 by Tom Castaneda

He’s already a big star in Latin America… But Manolo Cardona may soon be wowing audiences in the United States.

In what could be his first acting role on English-language television, the 35-year-old Colombian-born actor has joined the cast of USA’s untitled hour-long pilot from Numbers creators Nicolas Falacci & Cheryl Heuton.

Based on a short story from Elmore Leonard‘s When The Women Come Out To Dance, it centers on Billy (Bryan Greenberg), a Miami businessman who, contemplating a run for political office, tries to increase his chances of being elected by marrying Lourdes (Miss Bala star Stephanie Sigman), a Colombian woman on the run from her troubled past.

What starts as a marriage of convenience quickly escalates into much more as his new wife proves to be more resourceful at “fixing” any problem the corrupt South Miami political scene throws at her husband.

Cardona will play Andres Varges, a handsome political science professor at the University of Miami. A man with a past he’d rather forget, he once worked for Colombian military intelligence and agrees to help Lourdes when she seeks him out for his expertise in the political arena, despite the complicated past between the two.

Sigman Lands the Lead in Untitled USA Pilot…

Posted on November 14, 2012 by Tom Castaneda

Stephanie Sigman has caught Hollywood’s attention…

The 25-year-old Mexican actress, the breakout star of Gerardo Naranjo’s critically acclaimed Mexican film Miss Bala, has been cast in USA’s untitled hourlong pilot from Numbers creators Nicolas Falacci and Cheryl Heuton.

Sigman would star opposite former How To Make It In America star Bryan Greenberg in the pilot, which will likely begin filming in Miami this January.

Directed by Kevin Bray, the project – originally developed for NBC last season – is based on a short story entitled When The Women Come Out To Dance. It centers on a Miami businessman (Greenberg) who, contemplating a run for political office, tries to increase his chances of being elected by marrying a Colombian woman (Sigman) on the run from her troubled past. What starts as a marriage of convenience quickly escalates into much more as his new wife proves to be more resourceful at “fixing” any problem the corrupt South Miami political scene throws her husband’s way.

This marks the American television debut for Sigman, who has had roles in Spanish-language projects like Cambio de vida, Los Minondo, and Rio de oro.

Naranjo to Direct FX’s Drama Pilot “The Bridge”

Posted on September 12, 2012 by Tom Castaneda

Gerardo Naranjo is crossing the bridge into American television…

The 40-year-old Mexican filmmaker will direct the pilot for FX’s drama pilot The Bridge.

Based on the Scandinavian series Bron, the project centers on two detectives from the United States and Mexico who have to work together to hunt down a serial killer operating on both sides of the border after a dead body is found on the bridge connecting El Paso and Juarez.

Naranjo rose to acclaim after directing the critically acclaimed feature Miss Bala, Mexico’s 2012 Oscar submission, which centers on an innocent teenager who heads to the Mexican border city of Tijuana and inadvertently gets caught up in a violent drug war on her way to compete in the Miss Baja California beauty pageant.

Naranjo is attached to direct the film adaptation of the Charles Martin novel The Mountain Between Us for 20th Century Fox, which will star Michael Fassbender.

He also recently closed a deal to direct A Man Must Die for Focus Features.

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