Fresh off a record-breaking Super Bowl halftime performance seen by 128.2 million viewers, Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, known globally as Bad Bunny, is set to star in “Porto Rico,” marking his first leading role in a feature film. The historical drama, directed by René “Residente” Pérez Joglar, will explore the origins of Puerto Rico through the story of a 19th-century revolutionary.
The film will center on the life of José Maldonado Román, nicknamed “Águila Blanca” (White Eagle), a figure who fought against Spanish colonizers and led uprisings against authorities in Puerto Rico. Maldonado Román gained notoriety for his participation in the 1897 Yauco Uprising, where rebels, including Maldonado Román, attempted to storm Spanish civil guard barracks, an event that likewise saw the first public display of the Puerto Rican flag. He was repeatedly imprisoned for his political activities between 1898 and 1909, but became known for his repeated escapes from jail, earning him the moniker “magician.”
Joining Bad Bunny in the cast are established actors Viggo Mortensen, Javier Bardem, and Edward Norton. Alejandro G. Iñárritu, the Academy Award-winning director of “Birdman” and “The Revenant,” will serve as an executive producer on the project. According to a press release issued upon the film’s initial announcement in 2023, “Porto Rico” will “blend historical scope with a visceral, lyrical approach and a gripping narrative inspired by true events.”
Residente, a veteran rapper himself, described the film as a long-held ambition. “I have dreamed of making a film about my country since I was a child,” he told Deadline. “Puerto Rico’s true history has always been surrounded by controversy. This film is a reaffirmation of who we are – told with the intensity and honesty that our history deserves.”
Even as Bad Bunny has taken on supporting roles in films such as 2022’s “Bullet Train” and 2023’s “Caught Stealing,” “Porto Rico” represents a significant step forward in his acting career. Norton characterized the project as belonging to a tradition of epic historical dramas, comparing it to films like “The Godfather” and “Gangs of New York.” He praised Residente’s poetic sensibility and predicted his success as a visual storyteller, adding that bringing Residente and Bad Bunny together to tell the story of Puerto Rico’s roots would be “like a flame finding the stick of dynamite that’s been waiting for it.”
Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl performance, which featured a medley of his hits and a celebration of Puerto Rican culture, generated over 4 billion social media views, according to reports. The performance, described by one reviewer as “a dizzying reminder of the many pantheons of Puerto Rican legends,” further cemented Bad Bunny’s status as a cultural icon.
