28 Aug - Sony Pictures is set to collaborate with Mucho Mas Media to develop a remake of the 1987 Ritchie Valens' biopic, "La Bamba". The remake will be executive produced by Luis Valdez, who wrote and directed the original film that was nominated in the Best Motion Picture Drama at the Golden Globe Awards in 1988.
"Together with the rock and roll classics of Ritchie Valens, my 1987 biopic 'La Bamba' has graciously withstood the test of time. And yet, the tragically short life and career of Richard Valenzuela continues to inspire new generations of fans the world over," Valdez said. The project will be penned by Jose Rivera of "The Motorcycle Diaries" fame.
Mucho Mas Media's Javier Chapa expressed, "We're honoured and humbled to be retelling Ritchie's story - the story of an incredible young Latino man who inspired so many people through his music and prodigious talent. We look to uphold and celebrate the original film in ways Luis Valdez and the filmmakers of 'La Bamba' made it a classic." The original film, which starred Lou Diamond Phillips as the American Chicano rock and roll star Ritchie Valens, a farmhand who rose to fame at the age of 17 but tragically passed away in a plane crash eight months after his breakthrough. "La Bamba" was included in the annual selection of 25 motion pictures in 2017 added to the National Film Registry of the U.S. Library of Congress being deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".