Sony Announces New Marvel Film EL MUERTO and Bad Bunny Is Set to Star
During Sony’s big CinemaCon presentation, the studio announced that they are developing a new Marvel film with El Muerto. This will be the first Latino Marvel character to get his own movie.
They also announced that Bad Bunny, a.k.a. Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio (Bullet Train), is set to star in the film, and he’s taking on the lead role. The actor/musician was brought on stage and in a statement, he said, “To bring El Muerto to life is just incredible .. so exciting. It’s the perfect role for me and it’s going to be epic.”
For those of you not familiar with El Muerto, here’s a biography from Marvel that offers details on the character:
The powers and mask of the super powered wrestler el Muerto have been passed down generation to generation. Each wrestler had to prove themselves to their oppressor, el Dorado, so that they could remain alive and keep their powers. When Marcus Estrada presented his son Juan Carlos to el Dorado, Juan Carlos cowered in terror, unwilling to fight him. Marcus Estrada sacrificed his life to try and save Juan Carlos. Out of respect for his father's courage, el Dorado granted Juan Carlos ten years to travel and to become brave, and then to duel a masked wrestler and unmask him.
The character also has a history with Spider-Man, but it’s safe to say that Spiderr-Man won’t be a part of this film. But, here’s some additional background on how Spider-Man fits into the story in the comics:
Ten years later, el Muerto traveled to New York City and approached J. Jonah Jameson to set up a charity event: A wrestling match, in which el Muerto would fight Spider-Man. Jonah organized the match, hoping that el Muerto would defeat and unmask Spider-Man. El Muerto and Spider-Man both attended the match, and Spider-Man was confident he would easily defeat el Muerto. The tide turned, and el Muerto nearly unmasked Spider-Man. Reflexively, Spider-Man stabbed el Muerto with his stingers, injecting him with a paralyzing poison.
Spider-Man rescued el Muerto in the hospital when el Dorado came to claim his life. El Muerto came to and aided Spider-Man in defeating el Dorado. El Dorado still managed to escape before they managed to defeat him.
El Muerto is set to hit theaters on January 12th, 2024.