Bad Bunny will soon star in his first leading film role For an historical epic titled "Porto Rico"

Grammy, Super Bowl and soon also a leading role on the big screen: for Bad Bunny 2026 could not be a better year. It was in fact announced by Variety the release of the film Porto Rico where Bad Bunny, born Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, will be for the first time the absolute protagonist after a series of supporting roles in films such as Bullet Train and Caught Stealing. But what is the film about?

What do we know about the film “Porto Rico”?

From the little that is known, the film appears to be a historical blockbuster. According to Variety, in fact, the story should revolve around the birth of the nation. Which, given the complex history of the Puerto Rican nation, could concern several moments ranging from the independence movements of Ramón Emeterio Betances, Román Baldorioty de Castro or Luis Muñoz Rivera at the end of the 19th century; up to the rise to government of Luis Muñoz Marín, the first democratically elected governor of Puerto Rico in the country in the 1940s and the constitutional referendum of ’52 after the assassination attempt on President Truman by Griselio Torresola and Oscar Collazo.

Directing this ambitious project will be René Pérez Joglar, better known as Residente, a Puerto Rican rapper who has already won several Grammys. The cast already includes very important names such as Edward Norton, Javier Bardem and Viggo Mortensen. The screenwriters are instead Pérez Joglar himself and Alexander Dinelaris, Oscar-winning screenwriter of Birdman and The Revenant. All films by Alejandro González Iñárritu who is also among the producers of the film together with Pérez Joglar. Curiously, among the producers there are also Sony Music Latin-Iberia and Sony Music Vision.

What do they say about the film behind the scenes?

Edward Norton, who is also among the producers through one of his companies, has already compared the epic scale of the film to that of The Godfather and Gangs of New York. Two rather heavy points of comparison, indeed. He praised the direction and screenplay of Pérez Joglar who, at this point, could prove to be a new authorial voice for the country’s cinema. The participation of two singers and Sony among the producers also suggests that music will play an important role in the economy of the story.

With such an eclectic team of talents, the project promises to be a memorable work, capable of entertaining and provoking deep reflections on the past and present of Puerto Rico at a historical moment in which, between ICE raids and turbulence in the United States, a story not favorable to the nationalistic narrative of the world superpower under Trump could touch some raw nerves. But perhaps that’s better.

Takeaway

- Bad Bunny will make his debut as the absolute lead in the historical film “Porto Rico” in 2026, directed by the rapper Residente (René Pérez Joglar), featuring an exceptional cast that includes Edward Norton, Javier Bardem, and Viggo Mortensen.

- The film is described as an epic blockbuster focused on the origins and birth of the Puerto Rican nation, marking Residente’s directorial debut, with a screenplay co-written with Oscar winner Alexander Dinelaris and executive production by Alejandro González Iñárritu.

- Edward Norton compares the ambition of the project to classics such as “The Godfather” and “Gangs of New York,” highlighting Residente’s potential as a new authorial voice and the central role that music will play in the narrative, in a context that could touch on sensitive themes regarding the history and identity of Puerto Rico.