Natalie Morales to Appear on Season 20 of ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy”

Natalie Morales is taking the Hippocratic Oath.

The 38-year-old Cuban American actress has joined the cast of Grey’s Anatomy for the ABC medical drama series’ 20th season.

Natalie MoralesMorales will head to Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital as a guest star.

She’ll appear as Monica Beltran, a pediatric surgeon whose pragmatism and level-headedness have made her one of the best in her field. Her willingness to push boundaries can be admirable and aggravating, but it’s always aimed at providing top-quality care to her patients.

But Morales isn’t the only Latinx artist set to appear on Season 20.

Freddy Miyares has also joined the cast.

The Latino actors will appear in a recurring role as Dorian, an intelligent, warm and likable patient who is involved in a serious accident and is struggling with his future.

Grey’s Anatomy Season 20 premieres on ABC on March 14 at 9:00 pm ET/PT with next day streaming on Hulu.

Morales’ previous credits include White Collar, Dead to Me, Parks and Recreation and The Grinder.

Miyares’ previous credits include When They See Us, DMZ and The L Word: Generation Q.

Aubrey Plaza to Make Stage Debut in Off Broadway Revival of “Danny and the Deep Blue Sea”

Aubrey Plaza is preparing to make her stage debut…

The 39-year-old half-Puerto Rican Emmy-nominated actress, comedian and producer will star opposite Christopher Abbott in an Off Broadway revival of John Patrick Shanley’s 1984 classic Danny and the Deep Blue Sea this fall, with a producing team that includes Sam Rockwell.

Aubrey PlazaThe revival will begin previews on Monday, October 20, at the Lucille Lortel Theatre, with an opening night set for Monday, November 13.

The 10-week limited engagement will be directed by Jeff Ward, in his stage directorial debut.

Rockwell said in a statement, “My life and career have been profoundly impacted by Off-Broadway theater – like John Malkovich and Gary Sinise in True West at the Cherry Lane; Stanley Tucci in Scapin at Classic Stage Company; Phil Hoffman and Justin Theroux in Shopping and F*cking at New York Theatre Workshop; and Blasted with Reed Birney and Marin Ireland at Soho Rep, to name a few. I really do believe it’s the beating heart of this city. I couldn’t be prouder to be downtown at the Lucille Lortel with this vital play.”

Rockwell will be producing via his and Mark Berger’s Play Hooky Productions, along with Seaview, Sue Wagner, and John Johnson, by special arrangement with the Lucille Lortel Theatre.

The original production of Danny and the Deep Blue Sea premiered Off Broadway at Circle in the Square Theatre Downtown in 1984 starring June Stein and John Turturro (who won an Obie Award for his performance).

The official synopsis: Have you ever been caught in an earthquake? A chance meeting. A dive bar. Some encounters are so dangerous and so beautiful, they redefine the meaning of love. Follow two desperate people in the Bronx, Danny and Roberta, as they walk the line between destruction and transcendence.

Danny and the Deep Blue Sea will feature scenic design by Scott Pask, lighting design by John Torres, costume design by Arianne Phillips, sound design by Kate Marvin, and movement by Bobbi Jene Smith and Or Schraiber.

Plaza is best known for her breakthrough role on Parks and Recreation and, more recently, The White Lotus.

Natalie Morales to Star in the Dark Dramedy “My Dead Friend Zoe”

Natalie Morales is making a new (dead) friend

The 38-year-old Cuban American actress will star opposite Ed Harris and Sonequa Martin-Green in My Dead Friend Zoe, a dark dramedy about two generations of veterans, family and friendship.

Natalie MoralesKyle Hausmann-Stokes will direct the project in what will be his feature debut.

Written by Hausmann-Stokes and A.J. Bermudez, the film tells the story of a female veteran (Martin-Green) engaged in a mysterious but comfortable friendship with her wise-cracking (and dead) best friend from the Army (Morales). When the vet is summoned to the remote lake house of her estranged Vietnam vet grandfather (Harris), she is tasked with providing the one thing he refuses…help.

The film is based on Merit x Zoe, a short that Hausmann-Stokes co-wrote and directed last year, and both films draw inspiration from his real-life experiences during and after the military. A graduate of USC’s School of Cinematic Arts, Hausmann-Stokes served five years in the U.S. Army as a paratrooper and convoy commander and was awarded the Bronze Star while in Iraq. He co-founded the nonprofit Veterans in Media & Entertainment, and has focused his directing career thus far on the social and human sides of the military and veteran experience.

“My fellow veterans and I often get reduced to archetypes and melodramatic tropes. We’re much more dynamic, funny, complex than that,” said Hausmann-Stokes. “This will be a story about veterans we haven’t seen before; one that anyone, military/veteran or not, can relate to and enjoy.”

A Gotham Award nominee who’ll next be seen in the third season of Apple TV+’s The Morning Show and Sony’s R-rated comedy No Hard Feelings, Morales has previously appeared in such studio features as StuberThe Little Things and Battle of the Sexes, as well as well-regarded indies like Language Lessons and I’m Totally Fine.

She led the NBC sitcom Abby’s and has also been seen on series like Dead to MeSanta Clarita DietThe GrinderParks and Recreation and White Collar.

Other upcoming projects for the actress include two films out of SXSW 2023: the sci-fi romance If You Were the Last with Anthony Mackie, and actor Jake Johnson’s feature directorial debut, Self Reliance.

Salma Hayek Named to Time’s “100 Most Influential People in the World” List

Salma Hayek is being feted for her sway

Time magazine has released its list of the “100 Most Influential People in the World,” with the 56-year-old Mexican Oscar-nominated actress and film producer making the cut.

Salma Hayek

Each year, the media outlet honors 100 individuals that it perceives as holding sway, pairing the list with praiseful blurbs from contemporaries. The logrolling list contains comedians, sports stars, authors and other influential figures.

“Salma is a great observer and feels everything deeply. She’s strong yet sensitive, and she can read people very well. That’s what makes her a great actor, her ability to put herself in someone else’s shoes, from her breakthrough portrayal of Frida  Kahlo to her most recent performance as Maxandra in Magic  Mike’s Last Dance,” says Penelope Cruz in her write-up. “Her huge heart, great intelligence, and charisma are a winning combination, but the thing I’m most proud of is that she’s always entirely herself. As one of the first Latinas working in Hollywood, she’s opened so many doors for people who followed. She is a total revolutionary, and there’s still so much she will do.”

But Hayek isn’t the only Hispanic/Latinx artist to make the list.

Aubrey Plaza, who won a SAG Award this year for being part of the ensemble cast of HBO’s The White Lotus, received her special tribute from Amy Poehler.

“I met Aubrey, a deeply versatile actor and producer, almost 15 years ago on Parks  and Recreation, where she played the droll and mischievous intern April Ludgate. I knew two things immediately: I was working with a determined and profoundly talented woman with big plans, and I had met a dear friend for life,” says Poehler of the 38-year-old half-Puerto Rican actress/comedian. “Her work over the past decade has been acutely truthful and always surprising—whether conveying fear-based choices in Emily the Criminal, manic breakdowns in Black Bear, chilly secret keeping in The White Lotus, or whatever big and ballsy swing is up next in Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis.”

Zoe Saldaña, who became the first performer to appear in the top three highest grossing films globally earlier this year, received a tribute from Mila Kunis.

“Whether she’s kicking butt in Guardians of the Galaxy, saving humanity in Avatar, or making you bawl your eyes out in From Scratch, she’s always on top of her game,” writes Kunis of the . Zoe has also been a trailblazer for women and people of color in Hollywood, breaking down barriers and advocating for greater diversity and representation. She’s not afraid to speak out for what she believes in, and uses her platform to make a positive impact.

Other honorees include international soccer star Lionel Messi; Chilean actor Pedro Pascal; executive director of OnPoint NYC, Sam Rivera; Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva; Colombian president Gustavo Petro and Mexican activist María Herrera Magdaleno.

The list was first published in 1999. Nominations are secured from Time 100 alumni and the international writing staff. The final list is exclusively chosen by Time editors. There is also a commemorative gala held to celebrate the list winners.

For the full list of nominees, visit Time.com/Time100.

Natalie Morales to Star in Sony’s R-Rated Jennifer Lawrence Comedy “No Hard Feelings”

Natalie Morales is feelings so good…

The 37-year-old Cuban American actress and director has joined the cast of Sony’s R-rated Jennifer Lawrence comedy No Hard Feelings

Natalie MoralesThe Gene Stupnitsky-directed film, which is currently shooting, follows Lawrence as a ne’er-do-well who is hired by a rich couple to befriend their socially awkward kid.

Disney+/Broadway star Andrew Barth Feldman plays the kid; his parents are played by Matthew Broderick and Laura BenantiEbon Moss-Bachrach also stars.

Morales most recently wrote, directed and starred in Language Lessons opposite Mark Duplass. She also directed the Hulu film Plan B and was nominated for an Imagen Award for her acting work in Language Lessons.

She’ll next be seen in the film I’m Totally Fine, which she executive produces and stars opposite Jillian Bell.

Her television roles include White Collar, The Grinder, Parks and Recreationand Santa Clarita Diet.

Stupnitsky and John Phillips penned the screenplay for No Hard Feelings. Alex Saks, Marc Provissiero, Naomi Odenkirk, Lawrence and Justine Ciarrochi are producing. John Phillips is executive producing.

No Hard Feelings hits theaters on June 16, 2023.

Carlo Mendez to Star in Emmett Loverde’s “The Maginot Line”

Carlo Mendez has lined up a new project…

The 44-year-old Cuban American actor will star in writer-director Emmett Loverde’s The Maginot Line.

Carlo MendezMendez, the brother of actress Eva Mendes, joins a roster of new cast additions that includes Mara Marini, Diana Angelina, Alex Keener, Janna Bossier, Samantha Elizabeth Johnson Esq. and Mindy Montavon.

Based on Loverde’s play, the film tells of a young woman who is dismayed to find herself behaving like her own mother, with whom she has an extremely combative relationship.

The production companies are Kevin’s Entertainment and Emmett Loverde Sound and Picture. Hayato Mitsuishi produces.

Filming takes place this month in Los Angeles.

Mendez’s previous credits include Parks and Recreation, The Rich and the Ruthless and The Bay.

Carlo Mendez Taking Over Alvaro Orlando’s Role in Indie Film “The Legend of Jack and Diane”

Carlo Mendez is taking on a Legend(ary) role…

The 44-year-old Cuban American actor is set to take over Alvaro Orlando’s role in the indie The Legend of Jack and Diane, following Orlando’s departure due to a scheduling conflict.

Carlo Mendez

Mendez, whose credits include Parks and Recreation and 90210,  joins a cast led by Tom Sizemore, which also includes Robert LaSardo, David Timlinson and newcomer Lydia Zelmac, with production currently underway in and around the Los Angeles area.

Directed by Bruce Bellochi, the film is a revenge thriller, which takes its name from John Mellencamp’s classic song “Jack & Diane.” It centers, of course, on Jack (Tomlinson) and Diane (Zelmac), who decide to leave Indiana for a new life in Los Angeles. When the pair discover secrets about the death of Diane’s mother, their worst fears are confirmed, and they are forced to run. On the way to Los Angeles to confront evil, they create a hit list to exact revenge on everyone involved.

Mendez will play Detective Stanley Montana, the son of LaSardo’s reputed drug lord Cesar. Never accepted by his father, Montana has since fallen from his family’s good graces after choosing to become a cop.

Bellochi, Zelmac and Rick Geller scripted the project, which was originally set up as an episodic series for HBO but lost its footing amid the COVID-19 pandemic, with Bellochi and Geller reworking it as a feature. Bellochi and Geller are exec producing it with Jackie Kallen.

The younger brother of actress Eva Mendes, Mendez has garnered 64 screen credits over the course of his career, finding most within the last 15 years. He’s primarily known for his work in television, on series like NBC’s Parks and Recreation and The CW’s 90210.

Aubrey Plaza to Star in the Indie Film “Emily the Criminal”

Aubrey Plaza has landed an out of this (under)world role…

The 37-year-old half Puerto Rican actress/comedian will star opposite part-Spanish actor Theo Rossi in Emily the Criminal, the indie written and directed by John Patton Ford.

Aubrey Plaza

The film tells the story of Emily (Plaza), a woman down on her luck and saddled with debt, who gets involved in a credit card scam that pulls her into the criminal underworld of Los Angeles, ultimately leading to deadly consequences.

Rossi will play Youcef, a Middle Eastern immigrant who has big dreams and a lot of hustle, with Gina Gershon and Megalyn Echikunwoke co-starring.

Plaza is producing the film with Tyler Davidson and Drew Sykes. Low Spark is the film’s financier.

Plaza’s previous credits include Parks and Recreation, Legion and Ingrid Goes West.

Rossi is best known for his turn as the menacing Hernan ‘Shades’ Alvarez in Marvel’s Luke Cage, and as hacker and intelligence officer Juan Carlos ‘Juice’ Ortiz in FX’s Sons of Anarchy.

FXX Orders Animated Comedy Series “Little Demon,” Featuring Aubrey Plaza

Aubrey Plaza has landed a devil of a project…

FXX has picked up to series Little Demon, a half-hour animated comedy pilot starring the 36-year-old half-Puerto Rican actress/comedian, Danny DeVito and his daughter Lucy DeVito.

Aubrey Plaza

The project hails comes from Danny DeVito’s Jersey Films 2nd Avenue, ShadowMachine and FX Productions, with  Dan Harmon executive producing.

Little Demon joins animated comedy series Archer and Cake on FXX and FX on Hulu.

Created by Darcy Fowler, Seth Kirschner and Kieran Valla, in Little Demon, 13 years after being impregnated by the Devil (Danny DeVito), a reluctant mother (Plaza) and her Antichrist daughter (Lucy DeVito) attempt to live an ordinary life in Delaware, but are constantly thwarted by monstrous forces, including Satan, who yearns for custody of his daughter’s soul.

Little Demon is a hilarious new animated horror comedy featuring Danny DeVito, Aubrey Plaza, Lucy DeVito and a host of other great talent,” said Nick Grad, President, Original Programming, FX Entertainment. “Creators Darcy Fowler, Seth Kirschner and Kieran Valla have teamed up with Danny, Aubrey, Dan Harmon, Jake and Lucy DeVito, and ShadowMachine as executive producers on this unique new series for FXX.”

Plaza, of Parks and Recreation fame, serves as an executive producer.

Aubrey Plaza to Star in the Indie Comedy “Spin Me Round”

Aubrey Plaza is going for a Spin…

The 36-year-old half-Puerto Rican actress will star in Spin Me Round, an indie comedy directed by Jeff Baena from a script he wrote with Alison Brie, who will also star.

Aubrey Plaza

In addition to Plaza, best known for her work on NBC’s Parks and Recreation, and Brie, the cast also includes Alessandro NivolaMolly Shannon and Lil Rel Howery.

The film will be produced by the Duplass Brothers Productions and Limelight, the latter of which is fully financing the picture. Production begins next month in Italy.

Tim Heidecker, Ben Sinclair, Fred Armisen, Ayden Mayeri, Debby Ryan, Zach Woods, Ego Nwodim, Lauren Weedman, and Jake Picking round out the cast.

Brie plays the manager of the Bakersfield, California franchise of the Italian chain eatery Tuscan Grove. She wins an all-expenses trip to the company’s gorgeous “institute” outside of Florence, Italy, and the chance to meet the restaurant chain’s wealthy and charismatic owner (Nivola). Along with a mismatched group of local American franchise managers, Amber finds a far different adventure than the romantic fantasy she had imagined.