Pantaya to Launch Aarón Díaz’s Crime-Thriller Series “Toda La Sangre”

Aarón Díaz’s blood will be boiling this September…

Pantaya has set September 15 as the premiere date for Toda La Sangre, the crime-thriller starring the 40-year-old Mexican-American actor, singer and model and Ana Brenda Contreras.

Aaron Diaz 2012 CalendarBased on the best-selling novel by Mexican author Bernardo EsquincaToda La Sangre follows Casasola (Díaz), a tabloid reporter who joins forces with police lieutenant Edith Mondragón (Contreras) and Elisa (Yoshira Escárrega), a local anthropologist, who aim to decipher a series of murders that have shocked the country. Together they travel through Mexico City chasing a ritual murderer whose peculiarity is to recreate ancient Aztec sacrifices.

Aaron Diaz

Ana Brenda ContrerasAntonio Trejo Sánchez, Clementina Guadarrama, Cinthia Vázquez, Odiseo Bichir, and Julio Casado also star.

Produced by Fremantle Mexico, the 10-episode series is developed and produced by showrunner and executive producer Zasha Robles from Spiral International, the creator of the Emmy-winning series Falco.

The series is directed by Luis Prieto and Hari Sama; and written by Rodrigo Ordónez, Santiago Rocagliolo, Natalia Mejia, and Alejandro Gerber Bicecci.

Fremantle will also handle international rights outside of the Americas.

Ana Brenda Contreras Signs with AFA Prime Talent Media

Ana Brenda Contreras has new representation…

The 35-year-old Mexican American actress has signed with AFA Prime Talent Media, a division of Kenan Thompson’s Artist for Artist company, which launched earlier this year.

Ana Brenda ContrerasIn her English language debut, Contreras starred as Crystal Jennings in Season 2 of the CW series Dynasty, a reboot of the 1980s series of the same name.

Up next, Contreras will star in Telemundo’s El Conde: Amor y Honor, an adaptation of the 1844 novel The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas. She portrays Mariana Zambrano in the series—set to premiere in 2023— co-starring Fernando Colunga and Marjorie de Sousa.

She will also appear in the crime thriller Toda La Sangre for Pantaya opposite Aaron Diaz. She plays Edith Mondragon, a lieutenant who teams up with a journalist (Diaz) to uncover the truth behind a series of visceral murders that resemble Aztec sacrifices in modern-day Mexico City.

The series reunites Contreras and Diaz, who previously starred in the 2005 Spanish-language telenovela Barrera De Amor for Televisa. In her acting debut, she recurred as Juanita Sanchez in the Ernesto Alonso production.

Contreras stays in touch with her fans via social media, where she boasts more than 13 million followers across all platforms.

Victor Manuelle to Replace Carlos Rivera as Co-Host of the Latin Grammys Awards Show

Victor Manuelle is stepping-in in a big way…

The 52-year-old Puerto Rican salsa singer will now be co-hosting the Latin Grammys this Thursday night alongside previously announced hosts Yalitza Aparicio and Ana Brenda Contreras.

Victor Manuelle

Victor Manuelle replaces Carlos Rivera, who had to back out due to being exposed to COVID-19.

“This has been a tough year for all of us in the music industry,” Manuelle, who served as Latin Grammys host back in 2006, tells Billboard. “But I’m honored to be part of this event that, despite a pandemic, carried on to produce the ceremony.”

Having three hosts already speaks to the uniqueness of an extraordinary 21st annual Latin Grammys featuring star-studded performances from different pockets of the world. So, what exactly can viewers expect to see that night? Without spoiling any surprises, Manuelle shares, “this ceremony will be very special. Production wise it will be very different, for example, for the first time ever, we’ll see artists performing around the world including my island [Puerto Rico] featuring Bad Bunny.”

Manuelle is also set to take the stage with Ivy QueenRauw AlejandroRicardo Montaner and Reik‘s Jesus Navarro for the night’s opening musical number that will pay tribute to salsa icon Héctor Lavoe.

“Can you imagine? It’s a great honor for me,” he says. “The opening will allow us to relive Héctor Lavoe’s music, the music that is in our blood, that makes us so proud and is part of our musical history and culture.”

The Latin Grammys — which will also showcase diverse stories of hope, community, sense of purpose, and celebration throughout the night as part of their “music makes us human” theme — will air at 8:00 pm ET via Univision.

The event will be preceded by the The Latin Grammy Premiere, which starts at 3:00 pm ET via Facebook Live and is where the majority of the categories will be awarded.

Daniella Alonso to Replace Ana Brenda Contreras on the CW’s “Dynasty” Reboot

Daniella Alonso is part of a dramatic dynasty

The CW’s has recast the role of Cristal Jennings in its Dynasty reboot with the 40-year-old half-Puerto Rican and part-Peruvian actress.

Daniella Alonso

Ana Brenda Contreras — who played Cristal in Season 2 — is leaving, and Alonso is now poised to step into her stilettos. 

“Unfortunately, Ana Brenda Contreras will not be returning for the third season of Dynasty due to personal reasons,” executive producer/showrunner Josh Reims said. “We’d like to thank her for her contributions to the show and wish her all the best. We’re excited to welcome Daniella Alonso who will step into the role of Cristal.”

Alonso’s previous credits include RevolutionThe Night ShiftThe ResidentCriminal MindsAnimal KingdomBeing Mary Janeand the film Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2.

Dynasty has gone through a series of casting changes over the past two seasons. One of the original leads, Nathalie Kelley, departed at the end of Season 1. In addition, Elizabeth Gilliestook over the role of Alexis from Nicollette Sheridan.

Season 3 of Dynasty is set to premiere on Friday, October 11 at 9:00 pm ET.