Fidel Castro’s daughter voices support for James Franco as Cuban leader in ‘Alina de Cuba’

EXCLUSIVE: Fidel Castro’s daughter, Alina Fernández, instructed Deadline her approval of James Franco enjoying her revolutionary Cuban chief father within the upcoming unbiased function, Alina from Cuba.

She can also be proud that “the challenge is sort of solely Latino, in entrance of and behind the digital camera”.

“James Franco bears a transparent bodily resemblance to Fidel Castro, other than his ability and charisma,” Fernández mentioned of the 127 hours Oscar-nominated actor of Latino-Portuguese descent.

Fernández will star in Alina from Cuba by Ana Villafañe.

Deadline first instructed you that Franco would play Castro, Villafañe as Fernández, and Mía Maestro as his mom Natalia “Naty” Revuelta, the Cuban-born socialite with whom El Comandante has a passionate romance. . The movie directed by Miguel Bardem and scripted by Oscar-nominated scribe Jose Rivera (motorbike journals) and Pulitzer Prize-winning Nilo Cruz follows the true story of Fernandez, a Cuban exile turned social activist, whose beginning was the results of a tryst between Revuelta and Castro.

“I discover the forged choice superb,” Fernández instructed Deadline.

“Ana Villafañe is awfully proficient, and never solely as an actress as a result of she can also be an amazing singer, a really full interpreter. I’m certain that Mía Maestro, an actress whom I love, will perceive and interpret Naty, my mom , in a singular method and I am unable to wait to see her construct her character,” she added.

Within the movie, Revuelta sacrificed her private belongings and funds, in addition to these of her physician husband, to assist fund the beginning of the communist revolution. Fernández realized she was Fidel Castro’s daughter on the age of 10 when after years of secret visits to her residence, her mom lastly revealed that “El Comandante” was her organic father. Alina grew to become one among Castro’s most vocal critics, being arrested a number of occasions for making an attempt to go away, and was listed as a dissident banned from touring exterior Cuba. Finally, she defected to Spain in 1993, an occasion that made headlines on each main information community on this planet, earlier than making Miami her everlasting residence.

The supporting forged of Alina from Cuba additionally consists of Alanna de la Rosa, Maria Cecilia Botero (Encanto), Harding Junior and Cuban actors Sian Chiong and Rafael Ernesto Hernandez.

“The remainder of the forged goes to be a beautiful shock for all audiences,” continued Fernández who will likely be a biographical and historic guide on Alina from Cuba.

“The filmmakers have labored exhausting and I can solely be pleased about their inclusive general choice.”

“For me, an important factor about this movie is that the dialog about Cuba is alive,” asserted Fernández, “Personally, the expertise to this point is simply too surprising however greater than something, humbling.”

His statements come on the heels of the Primetime Emmy winner and The menu Actor John Leguizamo voiced his objection to Franco’s casting as Castro on social media yesterday: “How does Hollywood exclude us but additionally steal our tales? No extra Hollywood and streamer appropriation! Boycott! This F’d up! Furthermore, a severely tough story to inform with out enlargement, which might be flawed! I’ve no downside with Franco however he isn’t a Latino!

Alina from Cuba Producer John Martinez O’Felan hit again at Leguizamo earlier as we speak saying, “I wish to level out that his bizarre feedback, should you base them on family tree, are an indiscriminate assault and lack any factual substance.”

Leguizamo posted a follow-up video as we speak the place he additional defined his preliminary protest and highlighted how Hollywood usually forged non-Latino actors in Latino roles, whereas capping the variety of Latino actors in a movie and appropriating their tales amongst many different wrongs.

Alina from Cuba is shot solely on location in and round Cartagena and Bogota, Colombia’s colonial Spanish structure and design changing Castro-era Havana, Cuba. Manufacturing begins August 15.