Sony Pictures International Productions Acquires Worldwide Rights to Luis Estrada’s “¡Que Viva México!”

Long live Luis Estrada’s Mexico

Sony Pictures International Productions has picked up the worldwide theatrical rights to ¡Que Viva México!, the latest in a series of political satires from the 61-year-old Mexican film director, producer, and screenwriter.

Luis EstradaThe film is slated for release on more than 3,000 screens across Mexico, via Sony Pictures Releasing International, on March 23.

The film follows Pancho Reyes (Alfonso Herrera), a prosperous and “aspirational” middle class man who 20 years ago, abandoned his hometown and entirely forgot all about his very large and very poor family. One day, he receives unexpected news, when his father informs him that his grandfather, Don Francisco Reyes (Joaquín Cosío), a rich old miner, just passed away, and that he is part of his will and possible heir.

Alfonso Herrera, Que Viva MexicoMotivated by greed, Pancho decides to go back to the remote town of La Prosperidad to meet with his estranged and resented family, taking his wife, kids, and maid with him. But the mere presence of Pancho, his grandfather’s favorite — considered by his whole family as an arrogant and ungrateful showoff — and the possibility that he may be one of the heirs in the will, arises old feelings of envy and hate that have been kept under the surface for so long, causing a grand battle. A war over the inheritance ensues between Pancho and his folksy and tacky family: The Reyes of La Prosperidad.

¡Que Viva México! also stars Damián Alcázar, Ana de la Reguera, Ana Martín and Angelina Peláez.

Estrada directed from his script and story written with Jaime Sampietro, who also served as the film’s producer, with Sandra Solares aboard as executive producer.

Estrada told Deadline that “¡Que Viva México! is an acid social fable and a poisonous political satire; grotesque with a lot of black humor that, like a soulless mirror, shows and portrays us all in these times of polarization and intolerance but not in a realistic or naturalistic tone…but with the distortion given by parody, farce, magical realism and caricature. All framed in that little personal hell to which we all belong and that we all, for better or for worse, have and suffer: The Family.”

Omar Chaparro to Star in Sony’s Original Comedy “Tequila Re-Pasado”

Cheers to Omar Chaparro’s new project…

The 45-year-old Mexican actor/comedian has been cast as the lead in Tequila Re-Pasado, an original comedy from Sony Pictures International Productions. Chaparro will also act as executive producer.

omar-chaparro

Spanish director María Ripoll is helming the film, re-teaming with Sony after recently wrapping Guerra de Likes in Mexico for the studio.

The new film, adapted from an original script by Judd Pillot and Gerald B. Fillmore,follows a workaholic who must outwit his multiplying clones after a magical tequila travels him back in time – again and again – in order to make things right with his family.

“I can’t tell you how gratifying it is to finally work with Omar. We’ve been looking for the right project for years, and now we have it,” said Said Laine Kline, Head of SPIP.

“We are thrilled to be collaborating with a powerhouse like Maria again,” added Sandra Condito, SVP of International Film Production. “She exemplifies everything you could hope for in a director, bringing this project to life with her distinct yet universal vision through her ability to transcend cultural boundaries.”

Production is scheduled to begin in Mexico spring 2021.

Chaparro was the star of Spanish-language box office smash No Manches Frida, which was Mexico’s fourth highest grossing film ($11.8M) of all time before it was topped by its 2019 sequel ($17M), again starring Chaparro. The films, which also grossed north of $20M in the U.S., were remade from 2013 German hit Fack ju Göhte.

Vadhir Derbez to Star in the Spanish-Language Remake of “50 First Dates,” “50 Primeras Citas”

Vadhir Derbez is hitting the dating scene…

The 26-year-old Mexican actor will star opposite Ximena Romo in Sony Pictures International Productions’ Spanish-language version of 50 First Dates.

Vadhir Derbez

50 Primeras Citas is the remake of the 2004 Adam SandlerDrew Barrymore romantic comedy about a woman with short-term memory loss and the guy who continues to court her even though she forgets him after each day they spend together. It grossed $196M worldwide.

The update begins shooting this week in the Dominican Republic with Mauricio T Valle adapting, directing and producing via his Le Petit Soldat Cinema.

Also starring is Alejandro Camacho (Everybody Loves Somebody).

Derbez, who will also executive produce, is the son of Spanish-language megastar Eugenio Derbez and has been very active recently. He appeared in his dad’s How To Be A Latin Lover and starred in 3 Idiots, the second-highest-grossing Mexican movie of 2017.

Next up, he’s starring in The Perfect Dress, a romantic comedy pitch from writer Ed Horowitz for which Sony Pictures International Productions was closing a deal last month.

Romo’s credits include Everybody Loves Somebody, I’m Gonna Explode, Black Sheep and soap El Color De La Passion.

“We are thrilled to be working on this project with Mauricio, Vadhir and Ximena. They are destined to be the new stars of the Mexican film industry in a truly vibrant business where we aspire to be ahead of the curve,” says Diego Suarez, SVP Film Production, Sony Pictures International Productions.

“We think that Mauricio, Vadhir and Ximena are a part of the next wave of talent that is emerging from Mexico,” adds Laine Kline, head of International and Local Film Production, Sony Pictures International Productions.

50 Primeras Citas will be made with support from the Dominican Republic’s film incentive law and produced in association with Dominican based Lantica Media.