Bad Bunny lands first lead acting role in "Porto Rico," directed by Residente, with Javier Bardem, Viggo Mortensen, Ed Norton
CBSN
Bad Bunny is set to star in his first leading role in the film "Porto Rico" alongside Javier Bardem, Viggo Mortensen and Edward Norton. In:
Bad Bunny is set to star in his first leading role in the film "Porto Rico" alongside Javier Bardem, Viggo Mortensen and Edward Norton.
The feature film, described as "an epic Caribbean western and historical drama," will be René Pérez Joglar's directorial debut. Pérez Joglar, known as Residente, is a 34-time Latin Grammy and Grammy-award winning Puerto Rican rapper and actor who recently starred in "Frank & Louis," which premiered at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival.
Pérez Joglar and Bad Bunny, born Benito Martínez Ocasio, are longtime collaborators and friends. Two of Puerto Rico's biggest stars are now coming together for "Porto Rico," which will tell a story of the island based on true events.
"I have dreamed of making a film about my country since I was a child. Puerto Rico's true history has always been surrounded by controversy," Pérez Joglar said in a news release. "This film is a reaffirmation of who we are — told with the intensity and honesty that our history deserves."
While "Porto Rico" will be Bad Bunny's first lead role, the artist has appeared in several other high-profile films, including Darren Aronofsky's "Caught Stealing," and "Happy Gilmore 2," acting alongside Adam Sandler and Travis Kelce.
The story of America can be told through the lyrics of folk music – songs of the Great Depression, the civil rights era, and the social revolutions of the 1960s. As folk singer Pete Seeger put it in 1967, "A song isn't a speech; a song is not an editorial. If a song tries to be an editorial or a speech, often it fails as a song. The best songs tell a story, paint a picture, and leave the conclusion up actually to the listener."