Spider-Man Spin-Off El Muerto Starring Bad Bunny Has Been Removed From Sony's Release Calendar

Sony Pictures originally planned to release the film "El Muerto" — a Spider-Man spinoff film starring Puerto Rican DJ Bad Bunny — on January 12, 2024. According to a new report in Variety, "El Muerto" has been removed from the studio's current release schedule. As of this writing, it has no release date. 

El Muerto is a Marvel Comics superhero named Juan-Carlos Estrada Sanchez who gained superpowers from his enchanted luchador mask. The character first appeared in Spider-Man comics in 2006, and is possessed of superhuman strength and stamina, in addition to being a skilled luchador. El Muerto, as one might guess, lives in Mexico. He was to be the star in the latest of a series of Spider-Man-adjacent films that Sony has been putting out over the last several years to great financial success. Sony has had hits with films like "Venom," and its sequel "Venom: Let There Be Carnage," and gained a great deal of notoriety with their film "Morbius." Sony Picture Animation has also overseen the massively popular "Spider-Verse" movies.

In October of 2023, Sony will release "Kraven the Hunter," and in February 2024, they will release "Madame Web" starring Dakota Johnson, Sydney Sweeney, and Adam Scott as Uncle Ben. The reasons for the rescheduling of "El Muerto" were not revealed. This may lead to speculation as to whether or not the film has been canceled entirely, but Sony didn't announce that "El Muerto" had been removed indefinitely or simply delayed for an indeterminate amount of time. Either way, the film will likely not be made for a long time.

Bad Bunny was announced to be starring in "El Muerto" at Cinemacon in 2022. At the time, Bunny, aka Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, said that he was thrilled to be playing a luchador, having been a fan of free wrestling from a young age. "To bring El Muerto to life is just incredible," Bunny said, "so exciting." 

Bad Bunny, 29, has released four studio albums since 2018 and has won multiple American Music Awards, Billboard Latin Music Awards, and Billboard Music Awards. He has won Grammys for his albums "YHLQMDLG," "El Último Tour Del Mundo," and "Un Verano Sin Ti." His music has been described as belonging to the Latin trap subgenre, but also incorporates reggaeton and several other remixed genres as well. He came into the public eye in 2018 with a noted collaboration with Cardi B on her song "I Like It." Take a moment to listen, as it's super fun. 

Additionally, Bunny has appeared in several high-profile WWE televised wrestling events, and began acting in 2021 with a cameo in the massively successful "F9." Bunny also appeared in David Lietch's frenetic 2022 action picture "Bullet Train" wherein he played a character named The Wolf. He was credited as Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio. 

Whether or not "El Muerto" gets made, with or without its intended director Jonás Cuarón (son of Alfonso), Bad Bunny will continue to be a superstar. It's just a pity that the world won't be able to see the superpowered luchador movie as previously scheduled.