Jennifer Lopez to Star in KISS OF THE SPIDER WOMAN Film- Page 4

[Ke3]

Posted: 3/20/24 at 10:39pm

I’ve always felt that the way to draw out of the trans theme in the material would be to make Aurora trans, not Molina. Either way I’m excited for this. No she can’t sing it, but I honestly don’t know if I care after thinking about it for a few months. 

[FANtomFollies]

Posted: 3/21/24 at 8:04am

I worry this is going to be nowhere near as dark as 'Kiss' should be. Between Dreamgirls and the live action Beauty and the Beast, I really don't trust Condon at all with the material. I actually think Jennifer has what it takes to be an amazing Aurora but would need an A list director to get that performance from her. 

[Owen22]

Posted: 3/21/24 at 11:12am

IMDB still lists it as in pre-production without any other names attached besides Lopez and Condon...

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 3/21/24 at 11:24am

Owen22 said: "IMDB still lists it as in pre-production without any other names attached besides Lopez and Condon..."

Technically it is in pre-production as it’s currently in dance rehearsals. They don’t begin filming until mid-late April 2024. The others in the cast can be announced as late as 2-3 weeks into filming once it’s confirmed the casting is working. 

[QueenAlice]

Posted: 3/21/24 at 12:03pm

Word on other message boards is that Diego Luna is playing Valentin

[LucyEth2]

Posted: 3/21/24 at 1:04pm

I'm late to the party, but Rob Marshall as director and Penelope Cruz as star would have been my preferred pairing.  But I can certainly get behind Diego Luna as Molina.

[TotallyEffed]

Posted: 3/21/24 at 1:13pm

LucyEth2 said: "I'm late to the party, but Rob Marshall as director and Penelope Cruz as star would have been my preferred pairing. But I can certainly get behind Diego Luna as Molina."

 

I think there would have been backlash if they had cast any non-Latina as Aurora.

[Kad]

Posted: 3/21/24 at 2:03pm

This really would be more of Marshall's wheelhouse, but frankly neither he nor Condon are particularly consistently great directors.

[The Distinctive Baritone]

Posted: 3/21/24 at 2:10pm

Ke3 said: "I’ve always felt that the way to draw out of the trans theme in the material would be to make Aurora trans, not Molina. Either way I’m excited for this. No she can’t sing it, but I honestly don’t know if I care after thinking about it for a few months."

Fun fact: back in Chicago - almost twenty years ago - I was in a production of the show and Alexandra Billings was going to be Aurora/Spider Woman, but had to drop out prior to rehearsals starting. That would have been interesting!

[AEA AGMA SM]

Posted: 3/21/24 at 11:18pm

Granted it’s been a while since I read the script, but I don’t recall much discussion, if any, of Aurora as a person, it’s all centered on the characters she played. So I’m not sure what making the character trans would actually add to the story without feeling kind of heavy handed to add dialogue to highlight it (note, that I’m opposed to casting a trans woman to play the part if she was right for it, and I’m sure there are a good number who could sing the role in Chita's keys without much trouble at all, just questioning the character being changed to be trans rather than played as a cis woman)

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 3/22/24 at 5:59am

[Ke3]

Posted: 3/22/24 at 12:24pm

AEA AGMA SM said: "Granted it’s been a while since I read the script, but I don’t recall much discussion, if any, of Aurora as a person, it’s all centered on the characters she played. So I’m not sure what making the character trans would actually add to the story without feeling kind of heavy handed to add dialogue to highlight it (note, that I’m opposed to casting a trans woman to play the part if she was right for it, and I’m sure there are a good number who could sing the role in Chita's keys without much trouble at all, just questioning the character being changed to be trans rather than played as a cis woman)"

To me, if we're running with the idea that Molina might be more than just a fem presenting gay man a trans Aurora just adds subtext to his worship of her. I don't think it needs to be addressed at all beyond the casting.

[FANtomFollies]

Posted: 3/22/24 at 1:31pm

Any thoughts as to who might be cast as Molina? 

[The Distinctive Baritone]

Posted: 3/22/24 at 1:35pm

I am assuming that Billings would have played the role as a cis woman. She had played other cis female roles at this theatre (i.e. Mama Rose) and it would have been a follow-up to her success with another great leading lady role.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 4/4/24 at 8:05pm

We has beguns:

[KevinKlawitter]

Posted: 4/9/24 at 2:09pm

Diego Luna and Tonatiuh will star in the adaptation as Valentin Arregui and Luis Molina

 

Artist's Equity to serve as Producers

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 4/9/24 at 2:27pm

To escape the horrors of imprisonment, he imagines a movie starring classic silver screen diva Ingrid Luna (Lopez) as both fashion editor Aurora and the Spider Woman, who kills her prey with a kiss.

Who-da-Whut?!  

[Rentaholic2]

Posted: 4/9/24 at 2:53pm

This really struck me as something that gets announced and then never materializes, but....it seems to be materializing!

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 4/9/24 at 3:03pm

Rentaholic2 said: "This really struck me as something that gets announced and then never materializes, but....it seems to be materializing!"

Scroll up, boo. The film started principal photography last week. Dance rehearsals started in early March. Where ya been?  

[Rentaholic2]

Posted: 4/9/24 at 3:30pm

BrodyFosse123 said: "Rentaholic2 said: "This really struck me as something that gets announced and then never materializes, but....it seems to be materializing!"

Scroll up, boo. The film started principal photography last week. Dance rehearsals started in early March. Where ya been?"

Totally missed that!  Hard to believe we're getting a Kiss of the Spider Woman movie.  But very exciting. 

[jpbran]

Posted: 4/9/24 at 3:53pm

This is going to be super niche-y. Lopez' upcoming tour severely under-performing with lots of cancellations is showing her name/image alone isn't enough to guarantee success. The subject matter, supporting cast, musical-ness (sadly guessing it won't be marketed as a musical) are going to hindrances for sure. Will need a reasonable production budget and great reviews/word of mouth to make an impression and be a success -- but I'm def hoping for the best. Predicting a limited theater run, followed by exclusive Prime streaming. 

[Kad]

Posted: 4/9/24 at 4:05pm

I mean, I understand Rentaholic2's surprise at this actually happening. How many other adaptations of musicals have been announced in the last 2 decades- often with star names attached- that have never come to fruition?

Something about this still feels sort of weird to me, but I guess we will see.

Updated On: 4/9/24 at 04:05 PM

[MerchMan]

Posted: 4/9/24 at 4:37pm

Her new album completed bombed, her "movie" was a disaster and she's cancelling dates on her tour now because of weak ticket sales!!! She's more a Black Widow when it comes to entertainment, everything around her is dying!!!

[The Distinctive Baritone]

Posted: 4/9/24 at 4:42pm

It's still a "win," even if this doesn't do great at the box office (as long as it's done relatively well). Kiss of the Spider Woman is one of the least-performed and least-known musicals to win the Tony in my lifetime, and the film will hopefully give it some publicity. Even Sweeney Todd (my favorite musical, obviously) was not well-known outside the theatre world until the Tim Burton film put it in the national consciousness. 

[Kad]

Posted: 4/9/24 at 4:44pm

The Distinctive Baritone said: "It's still a "win," even if this doesn't do great at the box office (as long as it's done relatively well).Kiss of the Spider Womanis one of the least-performed and least-known musicals to win the Tony in my lifetime, and the film will hopefully give it some publicity. EvenSweeney Todd(my favorite musical, obviously) was not well-known outside the theatre worlduntil the Tim Burton film put it in the national consciousness."

Well, as a counterpoint... Nine didn't exactly uplift the musical very much.