Sony is placing Bad Bunny’s Marvel film, El Muerto, in a headlock. The studio is pulling the Spider-Man Universe movie from its release schedule, painting a grim picture of what is supposed to be the first live-action Marvel film led by a Latino character. According to Deadline, EL Muerto is still in development, but Bad Bunny’s tour schedule and the ongoing WGA strike make scheduling a nightmare. El Muerto was supposed to enter the cinematic ring in theaters on January 12, 2024.
Marvel hired Jonas Cuarón to direct El Muerto, with Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer writing the script. Jonás Cuarón is the son of filmmaker Alfonso Cuarón, whose 2018 film Roma won Best Directing, Best International Feature, and Best Cinematography prizes at the Academy Awards.
El Muerto, aka Juan-Carlos Sánchez, was a super-powered wrestler who initially fought Spider-Man in a charity wrestling match. He nearly unmasked Spider-Man before being accidentally stung by the frightened web-crawler with a paralyzing poison. After being saved from the hospital by Spider-Man, Sánchez’s oppressor, El Dorado, came to claim his life. Knowing his life was in danger, Spider-Man and Sánchez joined forces to defeat El Dorado.
Juan-Carlos Sánchez is the son of a luchador who inherits the ancestral power of “El Muerto.” The character’s abilities reside in his wrestling mask, though Sanchez also brings his antiheroism to the squared circle.
The Book of Clarence, directed by Jeymes Samuel and starring LaKeith Stanfield and Omar Sy, will occupy El Muerto’s original release date, moving from its initial date of September 22, 2023. The Gamestop movie Dumb Money, starring Paul Dano, slips into the September 22 spot.
Although The Book of Clarence will deal with religion, Deadline reports that movie isn’t faith-based. The synopsis reads, “Inspired by classic Hollywood epics set in biblical times, Legendary’s The Book of Clarence tells the tale of Clarence (LaKeith Stanfield), a down-on-his-luck denizen of Jerusalem embarking on a misguided attempt to capitalize on the rise of celebrity and influence of the Messiah for his own personal gain. It’s a journey that leads him on an exploration of the idea of faith and to an unexpected path of his own.”
Presented as a David-vs.-Goliath story, Dumb Money investigates how a group of private investors and internet trolls on a Wall Street subreddit called WallStreetBets hoodwinked one of the most formidable hedge funds on Wall Street. The carefully orchestrated attack on the market sent shockwaves through money lenders’ lifeless souls, sewing chaos in an infrastructure that had worked for generations. As a result of the debacle, a handful of first-time traders got stupidly rich, while influential players in the market had their coffers emptied in a matter of moments.
What do you think about removing EL Muerto from Sony’s release schedule? Is this a result of adverse reactions to the studio’s new Kraven the Hunter trailer? Feel free to let us know what you think in the comments.