Marc Menchaca to Star in Apple TV+’s Limited Series “The Big Cigar”

Marc Menchaca is going undercover…

The 46-year-old half-Mexican American actor has joined the cast of Apple TV+’s six-episode limited series The Big Cigar, which is centered on Black Panther leader Huey P. Newton.

Marc MenchacaMenchaca, who most recently starred on Netflix’s Ozark, will star alongside André Holland, Don Cheadle, Alessandro Nivola and Tiffany Boone in the project.

Based on the eponymous Playboy magazine article by Joshuah Bearman, the series tells the extraordinary, hilarious, almost-too-good-to-be-true story of how Newton relied on his best friend, Bert Schneider (Nivola), the Hollywood producer behind Easy Rider, to elude a nationwide manhunt and escape to Cuba while being pursued into exile by the FBI.

Menchaca will portray Agent Sydney Clark. A former lawyer and Vietnam vet from Oklahoma, Clark lives undercover as a dirty hippie while pursuing Newton, who is wanted on charges of killing a teenage prostitute.

NAACP Image Award winner Janine Sherman Barrois is serving as The Big Cigar‘s showrunner. Jim Hecht wrote the show’s first episode, with Cheadle directing and executive producing the first two.

The show hails from Warner Bros. Television, where Barrois and her Folding Chair Productions are under an overall deal. Barrois and Hecht are executive producing alongside Bearman, Joshua Davis and Arthur Spector through their production company Epic, a division of Vox Media Studios.

Menchaca is best known for his scene-stealing turns as Jack Hoskins on HBO’s hit series The Outsider, and as Russ Langmore on the Emmy-winning Netflix drama series Ozark.

He will next be seen in Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan, HBO’s miniseries The White House Plumbers, John Hyams’ thriller Sick and Gareth Edwards’ sci-fi pic True Love for New Regency.

 

His additional television credits include Black MirrorHomelandMacGyverBlue BloodsChicago P.D.Sleepy HollowThe Blacklist, Law & Order: SVU, CSI and Law & Order: Criminal Intent.

Cardi B Named Playboy’s First-Ever Creative Director in Residence

Cardi B is ready to play(boy)…

The 29-year-old half-Dominican American rap superstar has been named the first “creative director in residence” for Playboy, as well as a founding member of the brand’s new content-creation endeavor Centerfold.

Cardi B“Introducing the FIRST EVER Creative Director In Residence at the legendary @playboy, it’s ME!!!” Cardi Bwrote on Instagram. “Joining the @playboy family is a dream and I know y’all are going to love what we put together. I’m startin this party right as the Founding Creative Director and a founding member of CENTERFOLD the new creator-led platform from Playboy coming soon!!” she continued, adding, “We’re going to have soooooo much fun.”

Playboy also tweeted the news to their Twitter account. “Today is a Playboy milestone: we couldn’t be more excited and honored to welcome our first ever Creative Director in Residence, the icon, @iamcardib to the family,” the company shared.

In a press release, Cardi B revealed that the purpose of Centerfold is so up-and-coming creatives can have a safe space to embrace their sexuality and unique identity.

“They deserve to feel safe in their creativity and sexuality. And they deserve to own their future. This is what Centerfold is all about,” the Grammy winner stated. “For all those creators out there doing bold, revolutionary, truly culture-shifting things, come join me.”

Don’t expect Cardi to appear in the pages of Playboy, though — upon asking her Twitter followers who she should feature in “some sexy sh– on the cover of Playboy,” she told a fan that she isn’t interested when the user suggested she pose for the magazine.

https://www.instagram.com/iamcardib/?utm_source=ig_embed&ig_rid=210a5062-3970-446a-bd36-cf0ddf32d1de

Gael Garcia Bernal to Portray Salvador Dali in New Podcast “Playboy Interview”

Gael Garcia Bernal’s art is about to imitate art life…

The 42-year-old Mexican actor and producer is joining a slew of stars who’ll portray famous figures across history in a new podcast series from Playboy and Audio Up.

Gael García Bernal

The two companies are launching Playboy Interview, an audio series that features teleplay-style re-enactments of the most iconic Playboy interview conversations.

In addition to Garcia Bernal, other stars set to take part in the program are Rosanna ArquetteTaye DiggsMaya Hawke, Shea Whigham, Michael Shannon, Kevin Corrigan and Gina Gershon.

The series, which is set to debut in September, will see Arquette voice feminist pioneer Betty Friedan, Diggs will portray Muhammad Ali, Garcia Bernal plays Salvador Dali, Shannon is Tennessee Williams, Shea Whigham is John Wayne, Maya Hawke is Helen Gurley Brown, Kevin Corrigan is Frank Sinatra and Gina Gershon is Oriana Fallaci.

The first two episodes will feature “conversations” with Friedan and Ali.

The series is based on the classic Playboy Interview, which started in 1962 with Alex Haley’s conversation with Miles Davis and has run for more than 500 interviews including the likes of Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, Fidel Castro, Bob Dylan, John Lennon and Yoko Ono, Steve Jobs, Whoopi Goldberg and Maya Angelou.

“Working on the Playboy Interview was an incredible experience,” said Maya Hawke, who also portrays Ayn Rand in the second season, which is likely to launch in early 2022. “I got the rare opportunity to portray two of history’s most influential, controversial, and complicated women. I was allowed to inhabit the characters rather than being asked to impersonate them, which left me thinking about their respective perspectives for weeks after. And I felt inspired. Even if I don’t agree with them about everything, or anything – their strength, persistence, and insistence on being exactly who they are has reminded me to be exactly who I am.”

“Playboy is culturally iconic for many reasons, but their in-depth interviews and journalistic integrity is a large part of what has made the publication so cool,” said Gina Gershon. “I was so happy to work on a project that celebrates Playboy’s historic interviews with so many incredible individuals. I’ve always been fascinated by Oriana Fallaci, and was so excited to be able to take part in bringing her interviews to life. It was so much fun to explore this remarkable woman and share her point of view with the world.”

“We couldn’t be more excited to unveil the first season of the Playboy Interview podcast,” added Rachel Webber, Chief Brand Officer at PLBY Group and producer of the series. “Audio is the perfect format for these intimate and revealing conversations. Each brilliant performance by this incredible cast gives you chills, making you feel like you’re right there in the room as history unfolds.”

“This podcast is the culmination of a personal journey for me having spent seven years as Playboy’s editorial director,” added Audio Up’s Chief Creative Officer Jimmy Jellinek, who adapted, produced and directed all 10 episodes of season one. “Thanks to the explosion of audio as a medium, today we’re able to reintroduce these incredible conversations to a new generation. I have long thought the Playboy Interview would lend itself perfectly to formats off the page. In my wildest dreams I didn’t anticipate that something this magical would be the result.”

“We’ve paired the greatest conversations of the 20th century with the greatest actors of the 21st. Audio Up is in the business of pushing the boundaries of audio entertainment and this project exemplifies that mission in every way,” said Audio Up founder and Chief Executive Officer Jared Gutstadt.

Bad Bunny Featured in YouTube Music’s “Artist Spotlight Stories” Series

Bad Bunny’s in the spotlight

The 27-year-old Puerto Rican Latin trap and reggaeton singer, who recently made history with his appearance on the cover of Playboy, will be part of YouTube Music’s “Artist Spotlight Stories” series.

Bad Bunny

“Sometimes I feel I attract everything with my mind,” Bad Bunny expressed in a one-minute trailer posted on his YouTube channel. “I think a lot of people, if not everyone, can do the same. But not everyone knows that.”

Bad Bunny’s short documentary will share his road to success from the beginning of his career to his chart-topping YHLQMDLG album.

“I try never to limit myself, at least not me and when someone tries to do so, I try to push them to the limit, as far as I can,” he added in the trailer.

Bad Bunny’s Artist Spotlight Story will premiere on Wednesday, July 22 on YouTube Music.

He now joins OzunaJ BalvinBillie EilishShawn Mendes, and other artists who’ve been featured as part of the intimate series.

Bad Bunny Makes Playboy History with Digital Cover Appearance

Bad Bunny is real Playboy.

The 26-year-old Puerto Rican Latin trap and reggaeton singer and rapper has become Playboy’s first-ever digital cover star with two covers. 

Bad Bunny x Playboy

In the brand’s 66-year lifespan, Bad Bunny also becomes the only man, besides the late Hugh Hefner, to appear solo on the cover.

Bad Bunny x Playboy

In a story dubbed “Bad Bunny Is Not Playing God,” the “Yo Perreo Sola” singer opens up about his career and his surprise 2020 albums,

including the success of his second album “Yo Hago Lo Que Me Da La Gana,” which shot to No.2 on the Billboard 200 chart, and became the highest-charting all-Spanish language album of all time, with tracks that tackle sexism head-on. 

“The music industry and society in general (treat women) like they’re nothing,” he is quoted as saying. “Women are human beings and deserve respect and the same treatment as anybody else.”

And he opens up about being a queer ally in the world of reggaeton and Latin hip-hop. 

“I do all of this and I’m not even sure what I cause,” he admitted. “It’s not until someone comes up to me and tells me, ‘Man, thank you,’ that I realize the impact.”

Bad Bunny x Playboy

Of sex, Bad Bunny told Playboy it’s a “giant world.”

“Everyone is free to see it as they want and do it with whoever they want, however they want, with infinite possibilities. In the end, we are human beings. Everybody feels, everybody falls in love with whoever they’re meant to,” he expressed.

Bad Bunny x Playboy

Shot in Miami before the global pandemic hit by STILLZ, the cover story’s original photos show Bad Bunny dressed as a Greek God with his nails on fleek and bedazzled with the iconic Playboy bunny logo.

Bad Bunny x Playboy

Click here to read the full story.

The digital feature comes amid significant changes at Playboy. In March, the magazine announced it would suspend its US print edition for the rest of the year, citing “disruption” in production and supply chains caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

Pitbull: The Only Latino Artist on Forbes’ Hip Hop Cash Kings 2016 List

Pitbull is a cash king

The 35-year-old Cuban American rap superstar ranks at No. 7 on Forbes magazine’s Hip Hop Cash Kings 2016 list with earnings of $20 million. He’s the only Latino to make the Top 10.

Pitbull

Pitbull, who came in at No. 13 on the list last year, saw his earnings increase by $8 million compared to the last reporting period.

In order to be featured, artists’ “pretax income from touring, record sales, streaming, publishing, merchandise sales, endorsements and other business ventures” are reviewed and the list is then compiled.

Pitbull’s earning including lucrative endorsement deals with brands like Playboy and Norwegian Cruise Lines. Forbes reports that Mr. Worldwide endorses more brands than any other Cash King, except Snoop Dogg.

Meanwhile, Diddy holds down the No. 1 spot for the second year in a row.

Take a look at the entire top 10 Hip Hop Cash Kings at Forbes.com.

Mars Becomes the Tenth Man to Grace Playboy’s Cover

Bruno Mars is livin’ it up at the ten spot; and he’s got plenty of reason to celebrate…

The 26-year-old half-Puerto Rican singer/songwriter joins an elite group of men as only the tenth male to grace the cover of Playboy.

Bruno Mars Playboy Cover

Mars is featured in the men’s magazine’s April Sex and Music issue, out March 16. He appears on the cover alongside Raquel Pomplun, as well as in a fashion pictorial and interview inside. In his feature, Mars models spring designs by Marc Jacobs, Louis Vuitton, Dolce & Gabbana and more.

“Growing up in the showbiz world, I looked up to those guys: Frank Sinatra and of course Elvis Presley,” the Grammy-winning singer told Playboy of his idols. “My dad was into the 1950s doo-wop era. If you look at those groups, or at James Brown, Jackie Wilson and the Temptations in the 1960s, you’ll see you had to be sharp onstage.”

Bruno_Mars_Playboy

Mars displays his signature style and dresses sharply for his photo spread while donning his own personal Armani suit on the cover.

Surprisingly, the “Grenade” singer chose Jimi Hendrix, not Sinatra or Presley, as the musician he would most like to work with if given the opportunity.

“I think he’s the greatest guitar player in the world, and I would want to see him do his thing in person,” Mars said. “He’s the reason I picked up a guitar in the first place.”

As a Playboy cover star, Mars follows in the footsteps of several Hollywood icons. Peter Sellers was the first Y-chromosome to appear on the cover back in April 1967, followed by Burt Reynolds (October 1979), Steve Martin (January 1980), Donald Trump (March 1990), Dan Aykroyd (August 1993), Jerry Seinfeld (October 1993), Leslie Nielson (February 1996), Gene Simmons (March 1999) and Seth Rogen (April 2009).