A new Zorro series is coming to Disney+

Virgin Radio

12 Mar 2023, 15:17

'Encanto's Wilmer Valderrama will play the lead.

Bryan Cogman, known for his award-winning work on Game of Thrones, has been announced as the writer, showrunner, and executive producer of the upcoming Disney+ series, Zorro.

The show will star Wilmer Valderrama as the titular vigilante swordsman.

The masked vigilante was created in 1919 by American pulp writer Johnston McCulley, appearing in stories set in the Pueblo of Los Angeles in Alta California.

Cogman's award-winning work across Westeros includes the episodes 'What Is Dead May Never Die' from season 2, 'Oathkeeper' from season 4, and 'Stormborn' from season 7.

According to Deadline, the new Zorro series will be a "bold reimagining" of the character, with "humour, sinister intrigue, romantic entanglements, and swashbuckling thrills".

Valderrama expressed his excitement to be a part of the project, telling The Hollywood Reporter, "Growing up, Zorro was the one character that made me, as a Latino, feel like I could be a hero. As an adult and a storyteller, I have a responsibility in the stories that I help bring to life."

He continued, "To partner with Gary [Marsh, executive producer] and Disney to bring Zorro back into the family after 60 years and be a part of the legacy for other children to know they too can be the heroes of their own stories is a dream come true."

The show will follow Diego De La Vega, who returns to his hometown of El Pueblo de Los Angeles after a family tragedy and discovers a culture of corruption and injustice. This leads him to take on the mantle of the masked vigilante Zorro.

The last major onscreen portrayal of Zorro was in the 2005 film, The Legend of Zorro, with Antonio Banderas in the lead role.