Bad Bunny Will Be Marvel's First Latino Superhero In 'El Muerto'

Marvel has announced its newest superhero, and it’s someone who already has a fantastical way about him. Singer-rapper Bad Bunny (Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio) has been cast in the titular role of El Muerto, Sony Pictures’ next standalone comic book film. This will make Ocasio the first-ever Latino actor to headline a live-action Marvel movie — and El Muerto is the first Latin superhero to get his own Marvel film at all.

The announcement was made at Las Vegas’ CinemaCon — an annual gathering of movie theater owners — by Sony president Sanford Panitch. “To bring El Muerto to life is just incredible, so exciting,” Ocasio reportedly told the crowd, adding that he grew up a fan of wrestling. Per Marvel’s website, El Muerto is a wrestler whose powers are handed down by ancestry in the form of a mask that gives him superhuman strength. The relatively obscure character is part of the Spider-Verse, having first appeared in a 2006 issue of Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man written by Peter David, and illustrated by Roger Cruz.

In addition to wrapping his recent arena tour, El Ultimo Tour Del Mundo, Ocasio has been dipping his bunny paws into other acting waters. He’ll make his major studio debut in this July’s highly anticipated action movie Bullet Train, and was recently seen in Narcos: Mexico. He’ll also soon star in Cassandro with Gael García Bernal.

El Muerto will be released January 12, 2024.