•Antonio Banderas has been cast as the lead in an upcoming film about Hernán Cortés, the Spanish conquistador who captured Tenochtitlan and helped bring down the Aztec Empire in 1521. The production is expected to feature extensive use of artificial intelligence due to the involvement of Utopai Studios and Ex Machina Studios.
The film, titled Cortés, will be directed by Paul Mignot (Victory or Death) with a screenplay by Nicholas Kazan (Reversal of Fortune). Marco Weber, owner of the AI film company Ex Machina Studios, is producing the project.
Set in 1519, Cortés begins in Cuba, where a restless soldier hungry for glory seizes command of an expedition to the Yucatán and sails without permission. After landing on the coast of what is now Mexico, he meets Marina, an enslaved Indigenous woman and gifted linguist who becomes indispensable to his advance. As Cortés turns fragile alliances, faith, and fear into instruments of conquest, Marina watches him transform from a daring outlaw into a self-anointed messiah.
Synopsis
According to Deadline, filming has begun in Paris, with additional shooting planned for Spain, the birthplace of both Cortés and Banderas.
Weber’s Ex Machina Studios and Utopai Studios will be involved in the production as well as sales and global film distribution. It remains unclear exactly how much AI work will go into Cortés, but according to Deadline, the movie was long considered unfilmable due to the scale of the project.
According to Deadline, filming has begun in Paris, and more will take place in Spain.
While fans are excited to see a Spanish actor play a Spanish conquistador, there have been some concerns about the age difference. In 1521, Hernán Cortés was 36 years old. Antonio Banderas is currently 66 years old.
find a way to de-age Banderas if need be, given the expected use of AI in Cortés.
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