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Bad Bunny will become the first Latino lead in a Marvel live-action film after he was cast as the antihero, El Muerto.
On Monday night, April 25, Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio aka Bad Bunny appeared at CinemaCon after Sony Pictures Entertainment chairman Tom Rothman announced the reggaetonero's lead roll in Sony and Marvel's stand-alone film El Muerto. The "DAKITI" rapper surprised the crowd at the event when he came out on stage following the historic announcement.
“This is the perfect role to me," Bad Bunny told the crowd per The Hollywood Reporter. "It will be epic to me."
The film will follow El Muerto aka Juan Carlos, who is a wrestler with superpowers. According to Deadline, the character originally fought Spider-Man in a charity wrestling match before he was defeated by a poisonous sting from the webbed superhero. Once his foe El doardo shows up, Spider-Man saves El Muerto's life and they both join forces to defeat him.
This role really might be perfect for the artist-wrestling enthusiast. After appearing in Netflix's Narcos: Mexico in 2018, the "Booker T" rapper had embraced his passion for wrestling by appearing at the WWE's Royal Rumble last year. After facing off with wrestlers like The Miz and John Morrison, Bad Bunny landed his first film role in Bullet Train alongside Brad Pitt, which hits theaters this summer. The Puerto Rican native said he loved working with Bullet Train director David Leitch on the film and can't wait to become El Muerto.
"David (Leitch) is awesome," Bad Bunny said. "I loved working with him on my first film and now with this opportunity to bring El Muerto to life. It’s amazing, it’s incredible. I love wrestling. I grew up watching wrestling and I’m a wrestler. I’m a former champion so this is why I love this character. I think it’s the perfect role to me and it will be epic.”
Sony and Marvel's El Muerto is scheduled to be released on January 12, 2024.