Before you start reaching for your torches and pitchforks at the thought of studios making movies out of snack-foods now, rest assured that the story of the creation of Flamin' Hot Cheetos is at least somewhat unique. Variety reports that Fox Searchlight are developing FLAMIN' HOT, a film which will tell the true story of Richard Montanez, the man who created Flamin' Hot Cheetos.
As one of eleven children, Richard Montanez grew up picking grapes in California, but after dropping out of school and working a series of odd jobs, Montanez began working as a janitor at Frito-Lay. Endeavoring to become the best janitor Frito-Lay ever had, Montanez also ventured outside his janitorial duties by spending time in the warehouse and learning all he could about the machines, the company, and its products. He also noticed that none of Frito-Lay's products were spicy or hot, and thanks to a broken machine, he was able to get his hands on some Cheetos without the cheese coating. After taking them home, he dusted them with his own homemade chili powder inspired by elote, a Mexican street food, and the spicy snack was a huge hit with his friends and family. Richard Montanez was then urged to share his creation, and he wound up calling Frito-Lay CEO Roger Enrico directly and pitched him on what would become Flamin' Hot Cheetos, which are now Frito-Lay's top-selling product. As for Montanez, he's now an executive for PepsiCo (Frito-Lay's parent company) in charge of multicultural sales across North America.
It's now a little easier to understand why multiple studios were bidding for the project before Fox Searchlight swept in to scoop it up. Everyone loves a rags-to-riches tale, but hopefully this one won't leave our hands coated in spicy red dust.