Ramon Rodriguez Writing Latinx Hero With Hopes For Marvel Movie

Ramon Rodriguez has earned his stripes across Hollywood, starring in major franchises like Transformers, appearing in one-off titles like Battle: LA and Need For Speed, and playing key roles on popular but short-lived shows like Gang Related and Iron Fist. Now, he is primed for one of the few truly live-action roles in the Disney+'s upcoming The One and Only Ivan. As Rodriguez's face and performances become more common and better known and his celebrity star continues to brighten with each bit of hustle, the actor is poised to represent Hispanic culture on screen in the biggest way our world knows: through the super hero genre.

"I didn't grow up with the comics, I wasn't a big comic book fan. I had a lot of my friends that were. I was just outside playing on the streets of New York, mostly man," Rodriguez tells ComicBook.com. "But I love the films, and I love that I got play in that universe, and I really respect the history behind it, and I watch them, whenever there's a really great show, absolutely, but I didn't dive into the world of comic books. I wasn't an avid comic book reader. But when I read these parts like Bakuto for Iron Fist and Defenders, it's incredible worlds that these people create, and that's what fascinates me. I'm like, 'Look at this world that is so thought through,' and it's just great when you get to be a part of that world. They always say, by the way, you're never dead in the Marvel. You can always somehow come back, so who knows."

While Rodiguez has, as he noted, already appeared in a Marvel title his super hero card is certainly far from having been played. Whether or not Marvel Studios incorporates the Netflix universe of Marvel characters into the grander Marvel Cinematic Universe's canon, Rodriguez has ideas for a hero which could represent his Latinx community - and it sounds like he has Marvel in mind for it.

"Well, two things, one, I love Deadpool. I absolutely love that film. I just thought that character, and the humor, and all of that Ryan Reynolds did," Rodriguez explains. "So, I'm working on something, I'm writing something, that I'm hoping is gonna be something that we haven't seen yet. Like, for me being Latino, I wanna see more stuff that represents us, and there's so many fascinating Latinx characters out there that haven't been explored. They're in the Marvel Universe already, and so, during this whole pandemic and quarantine, like I said, I was writing. One of the things I've been writing is a superhero film that, hopefully, I get to make, which I think will open up the doors for some of these other new characters to come out."

In fact, Rodriguez has characters in mind, already, like Sam Alexander's Nova and beyond. "There's all kinds, White Tiger," he points out. "There's all these wonderful characters that haven't been explored yet. So, I'm hoping that they will realize that there's a massive audience that wants to see. They may not be the big household Spider-Man, Superman, but there's some fascinating characters." Not yet, but they can and will be.

Which Latinx characters would you like to see adapted from comics into movies? Share your thoughts in the comment section or send them my way on Instagram!

Rodriguez can be seen in The One and Only Ivan on Disney+ on August 21.