Jencarlos Canela Releases the New Single “Antes y Después”

Posted on July 3, 2022 by Tom Castaneda

Jencarlos Canela is celebrating the before and after…

The 34-year-old Cuban-American singer, songwriter and actor has released the new single “Antes y Después.”

Canela releases the single, which featured a powerful message, after going on a journey of self discovery.

His new track is an invitation to heal and come back stronger than ever.

Penned by Canela and produced by the Dominican singer-songwriter Maffio, “Antes y Después” is the artist’s most personal song yet.

The poignant track is a must-listen on this long weekend.

Canela’s acting credits include Grand Hotel, Telenovela and The Expanding Universe of Ashley Garcia.

Jesse Garcia to Star in the Eva Longoria-Directed “Flamin’ Hot” Film

Posted on May 4, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

It’s a flamin’ hot time for Jesse Garcia.

The 38-year-old Mexican American actor and former Quinceañera star has landed the lead role in Eva Longoria’s feature directorial debut Flamin’ Hot from Searchlight Pictures and Franklin Entertainment.

Garcia will play Richard Montanez, the architect of the Flamin’ Hot Cheeto, while Annie Gonzalez of Gentefied will portray his wife, Judy.

Flamin’ Hot tells the true life story of Richard Montanez, the Frito Lay janitor who took inspiration from his Mexican American heritage to create Flamin’ Hot Cheetos, the snack that disrupted the food industry and became a pop culture phenomenon.

Desperate Housewives actress and Telenovela, Grand Hotel, and Devious Maids EP Longoria beat out several directors for the job after impressing Franklin and Searchlight with her authentic approach to the project.

“It has been my biggest priority to make sure we are telling Richard Montañez’s story authentically,” said Longoria in a statement. “I am so happy to have two extremely talented and fellow Mexican-Americans on board in these pivotal roles. Jesse and Annie have a deep understanding of our community and will be able to help tell this story of great importance for our culture.”

Also new to Flamin’ Hot is scribe Linda Yvette Chavez who has come aboard for revisions on the Lewis Colick-penned screenplay. Chavez is the creator of Netflix’s Gentefied and she’s also adapting I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter at the streamer for America Ferrera’s upcoming directorial debut.

Garcia appears in the Searchlight Pictures title Under the Same Moon, alongside Kate del Castillo and Ferrera. He has been widely recognized for his role in the highly acclaimed Quinceañera winner of the Audience Award and the Grand Jury Prize at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival. For his performance as Carlos, Garcia was nominated and won the prestigious ALMA Award (American Latino Media Arts) as Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture in 2007. Garcia can also be seen in The Avengers.

Gonzalez is a Chicana actress and East Los Angeles native. She grew up singing with the band Quetzal, (which has been a noted force in the Chicano movement), was one of the original dancers on Jamm X Kids for the WB and has been appearing on TV since the age of 10. She is most known for her roles in Gentefied, Vida, Shameless, and Legion. She was recently cast in the ABC pilot, Bucktown starring opposite Jane Lynch and Nicole Richie. Gonzalez also has a YouTube page with videos dedicated to her thoughts on spirituality, self-love, peace, positivity and living life as a Latina.

Apple TV+ Orders Ramón Campos’ Bilingual Drama Series “Now and Then”

Posted on April 20, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

It’s a case of now and then for Ramón Campos…

Apple TV+ has given a series order for Now and Then, a drama created by the Spanish television writer and producer, one the country’s busiest and most important television producer, Teresa Fernández-Valdés and Gema R. Neira.

The series, from Bambú Producciones, will be shot in Spanish and English.

Set in Miami with an all-Hispanic cast, Now and Then explores the differences between youthful aspirations and the reality of adulthood, when the lives of a group of college best friends are forever changed after a celebratory weekend ends up with one of them dead. Now, 20 years later, the remaining five are reluctantly reunited by a threat that puts their seemingly perfect worlds at risk.

Gideon Raff will executive produce and direct the first two episodes.

The series will be written by Neira and Campos with their team. Campos and Fernández-Valdés will serve as showrunners. Bambú Producciones will produce for Apple TV+.

Campos and Neira created Spanish series Gran Hotel, which was adapted by ABC as Grand Hotel; Cable Girls, which is distributed by Netflix; and Velvet.

Fernández-Valdés worked with the duo on all three series, produced by Bambú. Campos and Fernández-Valdés executive produced the three Spanish shows, as well as ABC’s Grand Hotel.

This is the second bilingual English/English series Apple TV+ has ordered, joining Acapulco, a half-hour comedy series starring Eugenio Derbez inspired by the film How To Be a Latin Lover. The streamer also has upcoming English-language action-thriller series Echo 3, which is set in South America, and projects under an overall TV deal with Alfonso Cuarón.

Roselyn Sánchez Cast in Peacock’s Upcoming Dramedy Series “Armas De Mujer”

Posted on February 13, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

Roselyn Sánchez is armed and ready…

The 47-year-old Puerto Rican actress, singer/songwriter and producer has been cast in Peacock’s upcoming dramedy series Armas De Mujer.

Sanchez, who starred in Devious Maids and Grand Hotel, joins a roster of newcomers that includes Sylvia Sáenz and Jeimy Osorio.

They join previously announced Kate del Castillo in the series set for premiere later this year.

Armas De Mujer hails from the team behind Telmundo’s hit La Reina del Sur, which stars del Castillo.

Created by José Luis Acosta, in Armas De Mujer, four women suffer their worst nightmare after the police arrest their husbands for being linked to the same criminal organization. Accustomed to a life of abundance, they will now need to join forces in the most unusual manner.

del Castillo stars as Ángela, the wife of the cartel’s accountant and the fortuitous leader of the group of women who have gone from being care-free wives living in luxurious homes, to using all the weapons at their disposal just to survive.

Sánchez portrays Sofía, the tough wife to the cartel’s assassin. Sáenz plays Viri, wife to one of the top chiefs in the hierarchy of the cartel. Osorio is Esme, the independent and courageous wife to the head of the cartel’s assassins.

Armas De Mujer is produced by Telemundo Global Studios. The series is directed by Enrique Begné and Claudia Pedraza.

Eva Longoria Developing Latinx Family Drama “Chicano,” Based on Richard Vasquez’s Novel, for ABC

Posted on July 25, 2020 by Tom Castaneda

Eva Longoria’s hoping to bring the Chicano story and struggle to the small screen.

The 45-year-old Mexican American actress and former Desperate Housewives star has joined forces with Natalie Chaidez and Forest Whitaker to develop the family drama Chicano, inspired by Richard Vasquez’s novel of the same name, for ABC.

Written by Chaidez, known for her work on 12 Monkeys, Hunters and The Sarah Connor Chronicles, the drama is a multi-generational saga about the Sandovals, a Mexican-American family that immigrates to Los Angeles in pursuit of the American Dream.

It will follow the struggles and triumphs of the Sandoval family from 1920 through present and explores the question of what it means to be American.

20th Century Fox Television is the studio on the project, which is being produced in association with Longoria and Ben Spector’s UnbeliEVAble Entertainment and Whitaker and Nina Yang Bongiovi’s Significant Productions.

ABC has handed the project a script and additional development material plus penalty commitment. Chaidez, Longoria, Spector, Whitaker, Yang Bongiovi serve as executive producers.

It’s the latest ABC project for UnbeliEVAble Entertainment, which is currently under a deal at 20th Century Fox Studios Television. The company previously produced Grand Hotel.

Development of the project began with one of the executive producers, Doug Pray, working with Sylvia Vasquez, daughter of Chicano author Richard Vasquez, while Chaidez is a third generation Mexican-American whose own family’s immigration journey closely parallels the story told in Chicano.

“Chicano is just the first of many projects that we expect from Eva and Ben as we look to ramp up our slate of Latinx programming. As part of our studio family, they are valuable partners in helping us expand our commitment to compelling stories for underrepresented communities,” said Karey Burke, president, ABC Entertainment. “With Forest, Nina, Natalie and Doug also at the helm of this project, we know we have the perfect powerhouse team to bring this Mexican-American family’s story to life and cultivate the next generation of Latinx storytelling.”

Shalim Ortiz to Appear in Starz & Lionsgate’s “Power” Spinoff “Ghost”

Posted on July 24, 2020 by Tom Castaneda

Shalim Ortiz is seeing ghosts…

The 41-year-old Dominican and Puerto Rican actor and singer has landed a recurring role in Starz and Lionsgate’s Power spinoff Ghost.

The spinoff picks up shortly after thePowerseries finale, with Tariq (Michael Rainey Jr.) working to get his mother Tasha (Naturi Naughton) out of jail after she took the fall for her son in James St. Patrick/Ghost’s (Omari Hardwick) murder.

Ortiz will play Danilo Ramirez, an NYPD officer stationed in the Tejadas’ backyard of Queens, NY. Ramirez will find himself torn between the duties of his badge and duty to the ones he loves.

Mary J. Blige and Cliff ‘Method Man’ Smith also star.

Executive produced by series creator and showrunner Courtney Kemp (End of Episode) and Curtis ‘50 Cent’ Jackson (G-Unit Film and Television), Ghost also stars Power alum Shane Johnson once again as federal prosecutor Cooper Saxe.

Ortiz most recently appeared in ABC’s Grand Hotel. He previously starred on Starz’s Magic City.

His other notable television credits include CSI: Miami, Cold Case and NBC’s Heroes.

On the film side, Ortiz has appeared in The Winged Man and Bad Ass, among others.

Arturo Castro to Star in Quibi’s Comedy Series “Flipped”

Posted on August 26, 2019 by Tom Castaneda

Arturo Castro has Flipped out!

The 33-year-old Guatemalan actor is set to star in Flipped, a new comedy series from Groundlings alums Steve Mallory and Damon Jones, and Funny or Die, for Jeffrey Katzenberg and Meg Whitman’s short-form video platform Quibi.

Castro will star opposite Eva Longoria, Andy Garcia, Will Forteand Kaitlin Olsonin the series, which is currently in production.

Written by Mallory and Jones, Flipped centers around chronically underemployed couple Jann (Forte) and Cricket Melfi (Olson), self-proclaimed home renovation “experts” who are more than confident they are television’s next great home design celebrity duo. Flipped follows the clueless pair as their dreams of basic cable fame and glory are derailed when they get themselves kidnapped by members of a drug cartel, (Garcia, Longoria, and Castro) and are forced to renovate their sprawling homes.

Ryan Caseis directing the project.

Castro is the creator, writer, executive producer, and star of Comedy Central’s Alternatino.He’s known for his breakout role as Jaimé on Broad City, which aired for five seasons on Comedy Central and will soon be seen in the live action version of Lady and the Trampwhich will be released on Disney+.

Longoria co-stars in the live-action feature film Dora and the Lost City of Gold and will next be seen in the feature film Sylvie opposite Tessa Thompson. She is an executive producer on ABC’s summer drama Grand Hotel.

Garcia recently filmed Brian Petsos’ upcoming feature Big Gold Brick, Words on Bathroom Walls, directed by Thor Freudenthaland Redemption Day, a feature film directed by Hicham Hajji.

Jencarlos Canela to Appear in ABC’s Soap Opera-Drama “Grand Hotel”

Posted on September 16, 2018 by Tom Castaneda

Jencarlos Canela has landed a Grand new project…

The 30-year-old Cuban Americansinger, songwriter and actor is reuniting with his former Telenovela co-star Eva Longoria on ABC’s Grand Hotel, executive produced by the Mexican American actress/producer.

Canela will recur on the drama series from ABC Studios as El Rey, a popular Miami recording artist who’s sexy, charismatic, energetic, and amusingly cocky. He’s a major player both in the industry and with the women. He is offered a chance to be a staple performer at the hotel.

Written by Brian Tanen and based on the popular Spanish format series Gran Hotel, Grand Hotel is a soapy drama set against the backdrop of a Miami Beach hotel, centering on the family who owns the business, the staff who run it and the explosive secrets they hide under the perfect exterior.

Longoria and Ben Spector executive produce via UnbeliEVAble Entertainment alongside Tanen, as well as Ramon Campos and Teresa Fernandez-Valdes via Bambu Producctiones, showrunner of the original Spanish show.

Canela starred opposite Longoria as Xavier Castillo on Telenovela, which aired for one season on NBC. Canela also starred as Jesus Christ in the Fox musical The Passion.

Grand Hotel is slated for a midseason premiere on ABC.

Eva Longoria to Star in the Live-Action Film Adaptation of Nickelodeon’s “Dora the Explorer”

Posted on August 21, 2018 by Tom Castaneda

Eva Longoria is exploring a new role…

The 43-year-old Mexican American actress and former Desperate Housewives star has been cast in Paramount Players’ live-action feature of Nickelodeon’s Dora the Explorer.

Longoria is set to portray Elena, Dora’s mother.

The James Bobin-directed movie hits theaters on August 2, 2019 and is already in production over in Australia with castmembers Isabela Moner (as Dora), Eugenio Derbez, Micke Moreno, Nicholas Coombe, Madeleine Madden, Adriana Barraza, and Temuera Morrison.

In the movie, the young explorer takes on high school, and with her new pack of friends as well as her sidekick the monkey Boots and her cousin Diego, leads them on a Goonies-esque quest to save her parents and solve the impossible mystery behind a lost Inca civilization.

Longoria recently starred in LD Entertainment’s Dog Days and Pantelion/MGM’s Overboard.

Longoria, via her production company UnbeliEVAble Entertainment, is executive producing the ABC drama series Grand Hotel scheduled for a midseason release as well as the recently announced series Ambassador which received a big put pilot commitment from ABC. She was also the EP on Lifetime’s Devious Maids and NBC comedy Telenovela in which she also starred.

ABC Picks Up Roselyn Sanchez’s “Grand Hotel” to Series

Posted on May 11, 2018 by Tom Castaneda

Life is Grand for Roselyn Sanchez…

ABC has picked up the drama Grand Hotel, starring the 45-year-old Puerto Rican actress and former Devious Maids star, to series.

Executive produced by Eva Longoria, the series also stars Mexican actor and Oscar nominee Demian Bichir.

Based on the Spanish series Gran Hotel, the bold, provocative drama is set at the last family-owned hotel in multicultural Miami Beach. Charismatic Santiago Mendoza owns the hotel, while his glamorous second wife, Gigi, and their adult children enjoy the spoils of success. The hotel’s loyal staff round out a contemporary, fresh take on an upstairs/downstairs story. Wealthy and beautiful guests bask in luxury, but scandals, escalating debt and explosive secrets hide beneath the picture-perfect exterior.

In addition to Bichir as Santiago Mendoza and Sanchez as Gigi Mendoza, the series also stars Denyse Tontz, Bryan Craig, Wendy Raquel Robinson, Lincoln Younes, Shalim Ortiz, Anne Winters, Chris Warren, Feliz Ramirez and Justina Adorno.

Ken Olin directed the pilot, with the series being produced by ABC Studios.

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