Photo courtesy of Creative Commons / Jennifer Lopez
BY EMILIE WEINBECK, STAFF WRITER
Jennifer Lopez is taking on a role we have never seen her in before in her new Netflix movie. The trailer for “The Mother,” shows Lopez looking solid and fierce in the snowy mountains as she prepares for the journey she is about to embark on. The 53-year-old actress plays an assassin. She comes out of hiding for the first time in a while to protect her daughter, whom she had to leave earlier in her life due to assailants.
On Sept. 24, Netflix posted a tweet that was the first look at the thriller. The video is 48 seconds long and the tweet’s caption reads, “There’s nothing stronger than a mother’s love—and these assassins are about to learn that the hard way. Jennifer Lopez is the Mother.”
This highly anticipated release has a cast packed with stars. García Bernal, Omari Hardwick and Joseph Fiennes have all joined the cast as familiar faces in popular TV shows and movies. Hardwick is set to play an FBI agent who will be an ally to Lopez. Fiennes and Bernal will play the “dangerous men” who are chasing Lopez and her daughter.
The Netflix film is directed by Niki Caro, who just recently directed Disney’s live-action “Mulan’’ remake. “The Mother” is the first major film that Lopez has done with Netflix and also the landmark production deal that was made between the streaming empire and Lopez’s production company, Nuyorican Productions.
Lopez started working with Netflix this past summer when her documentary, “Halftime,” premiered in June. “I am excited to announce my new partnership with Netflix,” Lopez told Variety back in June. Lopez and her team hope that they can defy conventional wisdom and directly market to millions of viewers across the globe with Netflix.
Lopez started her production company with Benny Medina, who was her manager, back in 2001. The production company quickly rose to fame signing deals with HBO in 2003 and then with Fox and Regency Television in 2004. Before the Netflix deal came along the last deal the company had signed was with Universal Media Studios in 2008. Netflix is playing a big part in helping to get Lopez’s production company back on its feet.
The movie does not have a set premiere date but the teaser has revealed that it will be sometime in May 2023.
Since May is quite a few months away, now is the perfect time to look back on all the other times Lopez has shown her gritty side on the big screen. Go watch “Hustlers,” “The Boy Next Door,” and the star-making turn with George Clooney in 1998’s “Out of Sight.” Any movie that Lopez is in is a way to pass the time until May rolls around.
It has also been said that this is the first of three movies that Lopez is set to debut on Netflix as part of the new deal she has with them. The other two movies are called “Atlas” and “The Cipher.”
weinbeec20@bonaventure.edu
