John Leguizamo (L); James Franco.Photo: Arturo Holmes/Getty; Target Presse Agentur Gmbh/Getty
James Francohas reportedly been tapped to playFidel Castroin an upcoming film from director Miguel Bardem — andJohn Leguizamois not a fan.
TitledAlina of Cuba: La Hija Rebelde(which translates to, “Alina of Cuba: The Rebel Daughter”), the biopic will be focused on the late Cuban leader’s daughter Alina Fernández, with a script fromOscar-nominated screenwriter José Rivera and Pulitzer winner Nilo Cruz,Deadlinereports.
In aFriday Instagram post, Leguizamo, 58, wrote, “How is this still going on? How is Hollywood excluding us but stealing our narratives as well? No more appropriation Hollywood and streamers! Boycott! This F’d up!”
“Plus seriously difficult story to tell without aggrandizement which would b wrong! I don’t got a prob with Franco but he ain’t Latino!” the actor continued.
Franco, 44, is from Portuguese and Swedish descent on his father Doug Franco’s side, while his mother, Betsy Franco,is of Russian Jewish descent.
Reps for Franco did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
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James Franco (L); Fidel Castro.Daniele Venturelli / Getty Images; Photo Courtesy of Library of Congress
According to Deadline, Ana Villafañe will play Fernandez in the film, while Mía Maestro will step into the role of Natalia “Naty” Revuelta, whom Castro had an affair with and was the mother of Fernández.
Alina of Cuba"follows the true-life story of Cuban exile turned social advocate, Fernández, whose birth was the result of the tryst between Revuelta and Castro," per Deadline. The film will be shot starting Aug. 15 in Cartagena and Bogotá, Colombia, the outlet reports.
Leguizamo, meanwhile, has been outspoken in the past about feeling like it is still an uphill battle to get Hollywood on board when it comes to Latinx representation.
Leguizamo, who was born in Colombia, started writing his own material early in his career, resulting in critically acclaimed stage shows like 1990’sMambo Mouth, 1992’sSpic-O-Rama, 1998’sFreakand, more recently, 2016’sLatin History for Morons. They all satirized Latino stereotypes through the actor’s own life experiences, and aimed to teach the audience more about his community.
Reports of Franco’s involvement inAlina of Cubacome less than a month after it was announced that he’d been cast in the coming-of-age period dramaMe, You,marking his return to actingfour years after being faced with sexual misconduct allegations.
The Hollywood Reportersaid earlier this month that Franco is also starring in the upcoming action movieMace. His most recent roles include voicing a character in the 2019 movieArctic Dogsand the third and final season of HBO’sThe Deucethat same year.
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Last year, Francoreached a deal withTither-Kaplan and Toni Gaal — two of his former acting students whofiled a sexual-misconduct lawsuitagainst him in 2019. Records from the Los Angeles Superior Court at stated that he agreed topay $2,235,000 in the settlement.
Francobroke his silence in December 2021on SiriusXM’sThe Jess Cagle Podcast, saying that he’d “been doing a lot of work” on himself.
source: people.com
