In April 2022, Sony announced a new Spider-Man spinoff movie for their Sony Marvel universe, El Muerto. This movie was meant to focus on Marvel’s super-powered wrestler, anti-hero El Muerto. It was announced to star award-winning singer and rapper Bad Bunny at the time. Especially exciting was the prospect of El Muerto marking the first time a Latino actor would lead a Marvel film. However, the movie has faced some difficulties in becoming a reality since then. In June, Sony removed this Spider-Man spinoff from its release calendar. And most recently, Bad Bunny shared he would no longer star in El Muerto.
Speaking to Vanity Fair about the movie, Bad Bunny, whose full name is Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, noted, “I don’t know what to say,” when asked about the El Muerto role, offering that it was a “delicate” situation. The publication’s write-up alluded to an awkward pause. Ultimately, Bad Bunny’s publicist concluded, “Obviously, it’s out.”
Bad Bunny’s exit from El Muerto sounds like sad news for both the star and fans of the character. The actor’s on-screen skill combined with his WWE training made him perfect for the Marvel role. According to Entertainment Weekly, the actor even said, “I love wrestling. I grew up watching it, and now I’m a wrestler. That’s why I love this character. I think it’s the perfect role [for] me. It will be epic.”
Though El Muerto, whose real name is Juan-Carlos Estrada Sanchez, is not a particularly well-known comic character, the Sony movie seemed like a great opportunity to let him shine in a bigger way.
The good news is that, while removed from Sony’s release calendar, El Muerto remains in development with Jonás Cuarón as its director. While we would have loved to see Bad Bunny in the lead role of the Marvel film, we hope that, after the studios are willing to pay their actors fairly, ending the current SAG-AFTRA strike, we’ll see the movie move forward.