Warner Brother’s producer, Paul Perez was the key player in pushing for the Latino version of the classic remake.
In June, the film premiered on HBO Max and broke streaming records for the platform. Warner Brothers greenlit the film and it was produced by Brad Pitt’s Plan B. Directed by Greg Alazraki (We Are The Nobles), this is the third remake starring two of Latino entertainment’s biggest names, Andy Garcia as Billy Herrera, and Gloria Estefan as Ingrid Hererra. Matt Lopez (Race to Witch Mountain, Promised Land) penned the story based in Miami, and we get to relive the story of a father’s fear of losing his daughter to marriage. Unlike the other two versions, Billy’s character is adamant about sticking to Cuban traditions.
Lopez carefully married both Cuban and Mexican cultures played out by Billy’s daughter Sofia played by Adria Arjona (Morbius) and Adan played by Diego Boneta (Luis Miguel: The Series).
Billy and Ingrid are on the verge of divorce and are at their breaking point. Two fight and disagree, yet somehow, they attempt to keep their composure as Sofia, is about to come home after graduation. Tension starts to build as the wedding approaches and Billy finds out that Diego is not what he’s cut out to be. To make matters worse, he finds out that after the wedding, Sofia, and Diego plan to relocate to Mexico. Having no plan for work or housing, Billy grills Diego about his future with his daughter.
When the families finally meet, we get to see the vast delightful differences between Cuban and Mexican cultures. Billy meets Diego’s father, a carefree, fun-loving Mexican mogul named Hernan, played by Pedro Damian (Collateral Damage). The conflict between Hernan and Billy plays out and the two men fight over what traditions will be happening at the wedding.
Billy ends up having a meltdown and confesses to Diego that he’s divorcing Ingrid. He begs him not to tell Sofia. The film has many heartfelt and amusing moments celebrating two vibrant cultures. In the end, the wedding itself is a celebration of a young Latino couple with a bright future.
If these remakes are what it takes to capture Latino stories and garner the attention of larger audiences, then let’s hope that it will happen very soon.
Creative Credits
- Written by
- Christina Rosas Anastasiou
- Image courtesy
- HBOmax
- Photography
- Claudette Barius
- Creative Credit
- HBO Max / Warner Bros. Pictures
