Yul Vazquez to Star in MGM+’s Crime Thriller “Hotel Cocaine”

Posted on March 29, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Yul Vazquez is checking into his next project…

The 58-year-old Cuban-American actor and musician is set as a lead opposite Danny Pino and Michael Chiklis in Hotel Cocaine, MGM+’s upcoming crime thriller from creator Chris Brancato.

Hotel Cocaine is the story of Roman Compte (Pino), a Cuban expatriate who fought against Fidel Castro in the Bay of Pigs invasion and re-made his life in Miami. He is general manager of the Mutiny Hotel, the glamorous epicenter of the Miami cocaine scene of late ‘70s and early ‘80s. The Mutiny Hotel was Casablanca on cocaine, a glitzy nightclub, restaurant and hotel frequented by Florida businessmen and politicians, international narcos, CIA and FBI agents, models, sports stars and musicians.

Vazquez will play Nestor Cabal, Roman Compte’s (Pino) brother and one of the biggest suppliers of cocaine to a coke-hungry Miami population. He’s dangerous, funny, wily, and seeking reunion with his long-lost brother.

Chiklis plays Agent Zulio who will stop at nothing to shut down the drug trade, even if it means using innocent civilians to accomplish his ends.

The eight-episode series from MGM+ Studios, in partnership with MGM Television, will begin production in May in the Dominican Republic, and is slated to premiere in early 2024.

Vazquez will next be seen in the HBO Max limited series White House Plumbers, opposite Woody Harrelson and Justin Theroux. He was most recently seen on season 3 of the MGM+ series Godfather of Harlem opposite Forest Whitaker and in the Emmy-nominated Apple TV+ series, Severance, directed by Ben Stiller.

His other credits include Jason Bateman’s HBO series The Outsider, ABC’s Promised Land, Netflix’s Russian Doll, TNT miniseries I Am The Night and HBO’s Succession, among others.

His film work includes Books of Blood, Last Flag Flying, Gringo, Traffic and The Infiltrator.

Danny Pino Lands Leading Role in MGM+’s Crime Thriller “Hotel Cocaine”

Posted on March 15, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Danny Pino is checking in to a new project…

The 48-year-old Cuban American actor, who stars in Mayans M.C., will star as the lead in Hotel Cocaine, MGM+’s upcoming crime thriller from creator Chris Brancato.

Hotel Cocaine is the story of Roman Compte (Pino), a Cuban expatriate who fought against Fidel Castro in the Bay of Pigs invasion and re-made his life in Miami. He is general manager of the Mutiny Hotel, the glamorous epicenter of the Miami cocaine scene of late ‘70s and early ‘80s. The Mutiny Hotel was Casablanca on cocaine, a glitzy nightclub, restaurant and hotel frequented by Florida businessmen and politicians, international narcos, CIA and FBI agents, models, sports stars and musicians. At the center of it all was Compte, who was doing his best to keep it all going and fulfill his own American dream.

Brancato serves as executive producer and showrunner. Guillermo Navarro will direct the pilot episode and executive produce the series, with Michael Panes and Alfredo Barrios Jr. also serving as executive producers. The eight-episode series from MGM+ Studios, in partnership with MGM Television, will begin production in May in the Dominican Republic, and is slated to premiere in early 2024.

Pino, born and raised in Miami, stars as organized crime boss Miguel Galindo in Mayans M.C., which is heading into its fifth and final season on FX.

He made his episodic directorial debut in the drama’s fourth season. Pino, also known for his roles as police detective Nick Amaro on Law & Order: SVU and Detective Scotty Valens on Cold Case, recently completed the short film, Union de Reyes (Union of Kings), which he wrote, directed, produced and starred in.

Hotel Cocaine will be distributed internationally by MGM.

Hulu to Premiere Sixth & Final Season of “Snowfall,” Featuring Sergio Peris-Mencheta, in February

Posted on December 22, 2022 by Tom Castaneda

Sergio Peris-Mencheta is preparing for his final snowfall…

Hulu has announced plans to premiere the sixth and final season of Snowfall, starring the 47-year-old Spanish theater, cinema, and television actor, on February 22 at 10:00 pm ET on FX, and stream the next day on Hulu.

The premiere will include the first two episodes of the 10-episode final season.

The final season kicks off during October 1986, as a brewing civil war threatens to end the Saint family. After being wiped out by former CIA officer Teddy McDonald (Carter Hudson), Franklin (Damson Idris) becomes desperate and is forced to rob his own blood to get ahead. Now faced with losing everyone he loves and everything he built, Franklin has to out-maneuver the KGB, the DEA and the CIA, along with the LAPD’s corrupt CRASH units, to survive.

The drama series was created by John Singleton & Eric Amadio and Dave Andron, and is executive produced by Singleton, Andron, Thomas Schlamme, Amadio, Michael London, Trevor Engelson, Walter Mosley, Julie DeJoie and John LaBrucherie. Idris also serves as producer. Andron serves as showrunner.

Snowfall is produced by FX Productions.

HBO Max to Premiere Second Season of “The Flight Attendant,” Featuring Rosie Perez, in April

Posted on March 17, 2022 by Tom Castaneda

Rosie Perez is taking flight again…

HBO Max will premiere the second season of The Flight Attendant, featuring the 57-year-old Puerto Rican actress and activist, on April 21 with two episodes.

The eight-episode season continues with two new episodes on April 28, followed by one episode weekly, concluding May 26.

In Season 2, Cassie Bowden (Kaley Cuoco) returns with a fresh start in Los Angeles. She’s sober and moonlighting as a CIA asset in her spare time. But when an overseas assignment leads her to inadvertently witness a murder, she becomes entangled in another international intrigue.

The season filmed in Los Angeles, Berlin and Reykjavik.

Returning series regulars also include Perez, Zosia Mamet, Griffin Matthews and Deniz Akdeniz. T.R. Knight, Yasha Jackson, and Audrey Grace Marshall are returning recurring guest stars.

The season also stars new series regulars Mo McRae, Callie Hernandez, and JJ Soria, as well as new recurring guest stars Alanna Ubach, Cheryl Hines, Jessie Ennis, Mae Martin, Margaret Cho, Santiago Cabrera, Sharon Stone and Shohreh Aghdashloo.

The Flight Attendant is developed by showrunner Steve Yockey, who serves as executive producer alongside co-showrunner and executive producer Natalie Chaidez. Greg Berlanti, Cuoco, Sarah Schechter, David Madden, Suzanne McCormack, and Silver Tree are executive producers. Jess Meyer is co-executive producer and Bonnie Munoz is producer.

The series is produced by Warner Bros. Television, Cuoco’s Yes, Norman Productions, and Berlanti Productions. Season one was based on the novel of the same name by New York Times bestselling author Chris Bohjalian.

Zoe Saldaña to Star in & Executive Produce the CIA Drama “Lioness”

Posted on February 17, 2022 by Tom Castaneda

Zoe Saldaña is roaring into her latest role…

The 42-year-old Puerto Rican and Dominican American actress will star in Lioness, a film she will executive produce alongside Nicole Kidman and others.

Lioness is based on a real-life CIA program and follows a U.S. Marines recruited to befriend the daughter of a terrorist to bring the organization down from within.

Saldaña stars as Joe, a strong-willed, hard-nosed station chief of the CIA’s Lioness Program, who is tasked with training, managing and leading her female undercover operatives working to assassinate the world’s most dangerous terrorists.

Production on the film will begin in June.

Saldaña is best known for her work in Guardians of the Galaxy, Star Trek and Avatar.

Alanna Ubach to Appear on Season 2 of HBO Max’s “The Flight Attendant”

Posted on November 12, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

Alanna Ubach is taking Flight…

The 46-year-old Puerto Rican and Mexican American actress will appear on Season 2 of HBO Max’s critically acclaimed series The Flight Attendant as a recurring guest star.

Ubach will appear in the new season—which is currently in production—alongside returning series regulars Kaley Cuoco, Zosia Mamet, Griffin Matthews, Deniz Akdeniz and Rosie Perez; new series regulars Mo McRae, Callie Hernandez and JJ Soria; returning recurring guest stars T.R. Knight, Yasha Jackson and Audrey Grace Marshall; and new recurring guest stars Cheryl Hines, Jessie Ennis, Mae Martin, Margaret Cho, Santiago Cabrera and Shohreh Aghdashloo.

The Max Original, based on Chris Bohjalian’s 2018 novel of the same name, centers on Cassie Bowden (Cuoco), a reckless flight attendant with an alcohol problem who in Season 1, wakes up in the wrong hotel, in the wrong bed, with a dead man—and no idea what happened.

Season 2 finds Cassie living her best sober life in Los Angeles while moonlighting as a CIA asset in her spare time. But when an overseas assignment leads her to inadvertently witness a murder, she becomes entangled in another international brouhaha.

Ubach will play Carol Atkinson, also known as Black Market Carol, a perfectly groomed, icy flight attendant who is not a fan of Cassie.

Ubach is best known for her work in the Legally Blonde films, along with her turn as Mamá Imelda in Disney/Pixar’s Coco, and as Jo Hernandez-Frumpkis in the Bravo series Girlfriends’ Guide to Divorce.

She recurs opposite Kate Beckinsale on the Paramount+ series Guilty Party, and will return for the sophomore seasons of Disney+’s Monsters at Work, HBO’s Euphoria, and Hulu’s Crossing Swords.

The actress has also appeared in Netflix’s Maya and the Three, Fox’s Filthy Rich, FX’s Snowfall, AMC’s Dietland, Amazon’s Hand of God, Showtime’s Californication and HBO’s Hung, among others.

Additional film credits include Bombshell, Gloria Bell, To the Bone, Bad Teacher, Rango, Waiting… and its sequel Still Waiting… and Clockwatchers.

Netflix Gives Series Order to Monica Barbaro’s Global Spy Adventure with Arnold Schwarzenegger

Posted on May 20, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

The spy’s the limit for Monica Barbaro…

Netflix has given an eight-episode series order to an untitled one-hour global spy adventure starring the 30-year-old part Mexican American actress and Arnold Schwarzenegger.

In his first major foray into scripted television, Schwarzenegger will also executive produce the series.

The streamer landed the Skydance TV-produced hourlong series in a competitive situation last November for development with a script-to-series commitment.

In the series, created by Nick Santora, when a father (Schwarzenegger) and daughter (Barbaro) learn that they’ve each secretly been working as CIA Operatives for years, they realize their entire relationship has been a lie and they truly don’t know one another at all. Forced to team up as partners, our series tackles universal family dynamics set against a global backdrop of spies, fantastic action and humor.

“Fans from all over the world have been asking me for a wild ride like this for years, and now they’re finally going to get it because of our great partners at Skydance and Netflix,” Schwarzenegger said. “I am beyond pumped to start work on the show with Nick and Monica and the whole team.”

Santora created and developed the original idea and is executive producing the untitled series as part of his overall deal with Skydance Television. The project was developed internally at Skydance TV and the independent studio cast the two leads before taking it out to the streaming marketplace.

Barbaro’s previous credits include her roles as Yael in season 2 of Unreal and as Cora Vasquez in The Good Cop.

Noah Centineo to Star in Netflix Espionage Drama from Entertainment One & Hypnotic

Posted on April 28, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

Noah Centineo is heading into the spy business….

In a competitive situation, Netflix has landed an untitled espionage drama from Entertainment One and Hypnotic that is a star vehicle for the 24-year-old part-Puerto Rican actor.

The hourlong series, which has received an eight-episode order, is created by The Rookie creator Alexi Hawley who will serve as showrunner. Hawley and Centineo will be executive producers.

Centineo will play a fledgling lawyer at the CIA who becomes enmeshed in dangerous international power politics when a former asset threatens to expose the nature of her long-term relationship with the agency, unless they exonerate her of a serious crime. Originally, the working series title was Graymail, a term that refers to the threatened revelation of state secrets. Netflix hasn’t set a firm title yet.

The Fosters alum Centineo’s breakout turn came at Netflix through the film To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, in which he played Peter Kavinsky in the film adaptation of the Jenny Han novel. He was awarded an MTV Movie Award for Best Breakthrough Performance, reprised in a sequel and shot the third and final film in the series.

He’s also starring in Black Adam, which is set for release on July 29, 2022 through Warner Bros.

Aubrey Plaza to Star Opposite Jason Statham in Guy Ritchie’s Next Thriller

Posted on January 14, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

Aubrey Plaza is ready to thrill…

The 36-year-old half-Puerto Rican actress will star in Guy Ritchie’s untitled thriller film, which began shooting in Doha, Qatar, this week.

Plaza stars opposite British rapper Bugzy Malone, Jason Statham and Cary Elwes in the project, which will also shoot in Antalya, Turkey.

The film reunites Ritchie with Statham, marking their second film together for Miramax following Wrath of Man.

“Guy and Jason have repeatedly impressed audiences with their collaborations, and we’re looking forward to bringing this production to the city of Doha, Qatar, a growing market in the entertainment and media space,” said Nasser Al-Khelaifi, chairman of Miramax-owner beIN Media Group.

“This film marks our third collaboration with Ritchie, adding to our expanding list of nearly 20 projects having been released or currently in production since beIN’s acquisition of Miramax – a testament to our continued success achieving the target goals we set forth for the studio’s evolution while remaining committed to prioritizing investments in innovative and culturally relevant films.”

In the film, MI6 guns-and-steel agent Orson Fortune (Statham) is recruited by a global intelligence agency to track down and stop the sale of a deadly new weapons technology that threatens to disrupt the world order. Reluctantly paired with CIA high-tech expert Sarah Fidel, Fortune sets off on a globe-trotting mission where he will have to use his charm, ingenuity and stealth to track down and infiltrate billionaire arms broker Greg Simmonds.

Ritchie will direct and produce from a screenplay written by Ivan Atkinson and Marn Davies.

STX will distribute directly in the U.S., UK and Ireland.

Plaza’s previous film credits include Happiest Season, Ingrid Goes West and Dirty Grandpa.

Ana de Armas to Star Opposite Ryan Gosling & Chris Evans in Netflix’s “The Gray Man”

Posted on December 14, 2020 by Tom Castaneda

It’s a case of gray matters for Ana de Armas.

The 32-year-old Cuban-Spanish actress will star opposite Ryan Gosling and Chris Evans in Joe and Anthony Russo’s big-budget action thriller The Gray Man for Netflix.

The Russos have been developing the project for awhile at Sony Pictures, and when the package went back on the market over the summer, Netflix was quick to acquire it and set Gosling and Evans to star. The film will be the biggest-budget film in Netflix’s history on the feature side.

The Russos penned the script with a recent polish by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely.

The Gray Man is the debut novel by Mark Greaney, published in 2009 by Jove Books. It also is the first novel to feature the Gray Man, freelance assassin and former CIA operative Court Gentry.

The action thriller will follow Gentry (Gosling) as he’s hunted across the globe by Lloyd Hansen (Evans), a former cohort at the CIA. The film is based on the first installment of the best-selling Gray Man book series.

de Armas has been on a roll as of late, going back to her Golden Globe-nominated performance in the murder mystery Knives Out. She also recently was seen in the Netflix pic Sergio, The Informer and The Night Clerk. With the Covid-19 pandemic delaying several films, her 2021 is expected to be equally busy as she can be seen in the next James Bond film No Time to Die and the New Regency thriller Deep Water opposite Ben Affleck. She is also set to star in Blonde, where she portrays Norma Jean.

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