1521: Danny Trejo Cast as Ferdinand Magellan

Danny Trejo has over 400 acting credits to his name ranging from Machete and Con Air to Heat and Breaking Bad. He recently lent his voice to Minions and appeared in The Book of Boba Fett, and has many projects in the works. Trejo has played many characters over the years, but his upcoming role in 1521 will be very different from most of his previous parts. According to Variety, the actor will be starring as Ferdinand Magellan in the Philippines-Set historical epic.

1521 is being produced by Filipino-American filmmaker Francis B. Lara Ho of Inspire Studios. The U.S.-Philippines production will follow the Magellan’s journey as he became one of the first Europeans to travel to Asia. The script was written by Mary Krell-Oishi. Filming is expected to begin later this month in Palawan. In addition to Trejo, the movie will star Michael Copon asDatu Lapu-lapu, “an island ruler and leader of the warriors who fended off Magellan’s attempted colonization of the Philippine archipelago.” The movie will also feature Bea Alonzo as the Mactan princess Diwata, Hector David Jr. as Magellan’s translator Enrique, and Maricel Laxa-Pangilinan as Ahmani, the sister of Diwata.

While fans of Trejo will surely enjoy seeing him take on another leading role, many are still waiting for the star to return as Machete. Machete and Machete Kills both starred Trejo and were helmed by Robert Rodriguez, who also serves as an executive producer and director on The Book of Boba Fett. Machete Kills teased a third movie titled Machete Kills in Space, and fans have been eager to see the next installment for years. Back in 2019, Trejo said he’d be willing to write and direct the movie himself. In an interview with Discussing Film in 2020, the actor repeated those sentiments about penning the script after giving an unfortunate update about the movie.

“Machete, Machete Kills, if Robert would ever get off his ass, he’d write Machete Kills in Space! I might write it [laughs].” He added, “You know I haven’t spoken to Robert in a while. He’s been really busy and I’ve been busy. Maybe I’ll call him, see what’s up. But I haven’t talked to Robert for a while. He kind of dumped me I think… I got too big (laughs). He’s great. But he’s busy, he’s got six kids. That will keep you busy. His kids are wonderful too.”

Are you excited to see Danny Trejo play Magellan? Tell us in the comments!