Moving on from the role of Cassian Andor (well, as much as any actor can ‘move on’ from Star Wars), Diego Luna will play the role of Valentin Arregui in Bill Condon’s Kiss of the Spider Woman, the 1976 novel adapted into an Oscar winning 1985 film starring the late Raul Julia and William Hurt and again into a Tony Award winning musical. Luna joins megastar Jennifer Lopez and newcomer Tonatiuh, and with no release date yet set for the film don’t be surprised if a story with this pedigree wins even more awards.
Based on the 1976 novel by Manuel Puig, the film is set in an Argentinian prison, during the “Dirty War” that saw the ruling military junta launch a war against the country’s political dissidents. It focuses on two cellmates; Luis Molina (Tonatiuh), a gay window dresser, and Valentin Arregui (Luna), a revolutionary. Molina is a cinephile, and maintains his sanity by fantasizing about a movie starring Ingrid Luna (Lopez) as both fashion editor Aurora and the deadly Spider Woman of the title. The two men form an unlikely bond, even as their captors try to use Molina to extract information from Valentin.
The novel was previously adapted into an acclaimed 1985 film, which starred William Hurt as Luis, Raul Julia as Valentin, and Sônia Braga as the Spider Woman; Hurt won Best Actor at the Academy Awards for his performance. Its musical adaptation premiered in Toronto before moving to London’s West End and then Broadway. It starred the late Chita Rivera as the female lead; María Conchita Alonso and Vanessa Williams later took on the role. The musical was well-reviewed; it won the Tony for Best Musical, and all three of its leads collected Tony Awards for their work, as well.
- Hardcover Book
- Kempshall, Chris (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 432 Pages - 07/09/2024 (Publication Date) - DK (Publisher)
