Hollywood actor Danny Trejo will play Magellan in film ‘1521’

Danny Trejo will play Ferdinand Magellan in “1521,” an upcoming historical epic that follows the Spanish expedition that reached the Philippine archipelago on March 16, 1521 and depicts the Battle of Mactan | Handout

Hollywood actor Danny Trejo will play the role of Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan in “1521,” an upcoming historical epic that follows the Spanish expedition that reached the Philippine archipelago on March 16, 1521 and depicts the Battle of Mactan, Variety has reported.

Trejo, who appeared in “Machete,” “Con Air,” and “Heat” among other films, will be joined by Michael Copon (“One Tree Hill,” “Power Rangers,” “Scorpion King 2”) who will play Datu Lapu-Lapu, who led the warriors that defeated Magellan’s forces and killed the explorer in the Battle of Mactan on April 27, 1521.

Complicating the historic encounter is an imagined forbidden romance between native Mactan princess Diwata, played by Filipino actress Bea Alonzo and a Spanish soldier.

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Alonzo was named a Talent to Watch by Variety and the International Film Festival and Awards Macao in 2019. She is also due to star in the WWII story “Angel Warrior” as a woman whose near-death experience transforms her into a ferocious underground fighter, described as a “she devil.”

Magellan’s translator, Enrique, is played by Hector David Jr. (“Power Rangers,” “East Los High”). Filipino actress Maricel Laxa-Pangilinan will be playing Ahmani, the sister of Diwata.

Filipino-American filmmaker Francis B. Lara Ho of Inspire Studios (“Angel Warrior,” “Palawan: Last Man Out”) is producing the US-Philippine project.

Mary Krell-Oishi wrote the script for “1521,” which will start filming in Palawan this month.