EXCLUSIVE: Sergio Peris-Mencheta (Snowfall) has been tapped for a villain role in El Tigre, the R-rated comedy marking comedian Tom Segura’s first starring vehicle on the film side.
Specifics as to the character to be played by Peris-Mencheta are under wraps. Currently in production in New Mexico with backing from Will Meldman’s Double Down Pictures, El Tigre follows Jeff (Segura) and his friends as they head down to Mexico, only to discover the hard way that Jeff is a dead ringer for the infamous cartel leader El Tigre who’s gone missing. After being captured by rivals and then rescued by El Tigre’s forces, Jeff has to pretend to be their ruthless leader until he can find his friends and a way home.
As previously announced, the cast also includes Luke Wilson, Tim Baltz, Genesis Rodriguez, Arturo Castro, Harvey Guillén, Raul Trujillo, Frankie Quinones, and Kirk Fox.
The project has had a long journey toward screens. Based on a buzzy spec from then-first-time writers Aaron Buchsbaum and Teddy Riley, it was set up at Sony 13 years ago with Mosaic aboard to produce and had been stuck in development hell, up to the point that Segura resuscitated it. We were first to report on his iteration, directed by Mermaid‘s Tyler Cornack, in June.
Mosaic, founded by Jimmy Miller, is producing alongside Segura and his YMH Studios partner Ryan P. Hall; Meldman and Eddie Glaeser for Double Down Pictures; as well as M. Riley and Molly Mandel for Mosaic.
Best known for his role as aspiring luchador turned cartel enforcer Gustavo “El Oso” Zapata on FX’s Snowfall, a crime drama that ran for six seasons, Peris-Mencheta’s’ other credits include Meg 2: The Trench, Rambo: Last Blood, and Resident Evil: Afterlife. He is repped by Gersh and Vision Entertainment.
