16 Movies & Shows Featuring Latinx Talent Coming Out in 2022

With the news of the cancellation of Gentefied earlier this month, it feels like the year is off to a rocky start for Latinx representation in Hollywood

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With the news of the cancellation of Gentefied earlier this month, it feels like the year is off to a rocky start for Latinx representation in Hollywood. The show made many of us feel seen and its cancellation after just two seasons was reminiscent of the other short-lived yet powerful Latinx shows like One Day at a Time and Vida. That said, we’re super-excited about a lot of the movies and shows that are premiering in 2022, in part because some of our favorite Latinx actors will be appearing on both the big screen and the small screen. From longtime faves like Jennifer Lopez and Diego Luna to up-and-comers like Jenna Ortega and Leslie Grace, lots of Latinx stars are set to appear on-screen this year.

It’s a good thing too, because we already miss shows like On My Block, Superstore, One Day at a Time, Vida and Mr. Iglesias, all of which came to a close between 2020 and 2021. We can at least look forward to Latinx-led On My Block spin-off Freeridge and With Love from ODAAT creator Gloria Calderón Kellett. While last year we got a lot more than usual Latinx representation with movies like In the Heights and Encanto, in 2022,  we’re hoping we get that much more. Keep scrolling to see some of the movies and shows starring Latinx actors that are coming out in 2022.

The 355

The 355  is a female-forward action flick that stars Kenyan-Mexican actor Lupita Nyong’o and Venezuelan actor Edgar Ramirez, as well as other huge stars including Penelope Cruz, Jessica Chastain, Bing Bing Fan and Diane Kruger. It’s about an international team of special agents tasked with retrieving a secret weapon from a dangerous mercenary. The film is out now.

Scream

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Horror movie fans have been waiting anxiously for the release of the fifth movie in the Scream franchise.Three of the original film’s stars—Neve Campbell, David Arquette and Courteney Cox—reprise their roles, alongside some fresh talent including In the Heights star Melissa Barrera and actor Jenna Ortega who has starred in shows including You and Jane the Virgin. The film takes place in the fictional, serial-killer-plagued town of Woodsboro and will undoubtedly follow the franchise’s slasher formula, but we’re excited to see some Latinas in there! The film is out now.

Marry Me

J.Lo’s company, Nuyorican productions, produced the rom-com Second Act in 2018 and the critically acclaimed film Hustlers in 2019 and this year it’s Marry Me. The rom-com is about two pop singers (Lopez and co-star Maluma) who’ve planned a huge wedding that will be viewed by all of their fans, but when Jen’s character, Kat, learns her fiancé is a cheater, she impulsively decides to marry a random stranger in the audience instead (played by Owen Wilson). So think Notting Hill but with J.Lo ‘s more over the top style and a whole wedding before the romance even begins. The film is out Valentine’s Day.

Morbius

Jared Leto’s highly anticipated turn as Marvel character Michael Morbius has been plagued by delays for almost two years now, and was once again pushed back from a January 2022 release to an April 1, 2022, release. About a biochemist who infects himself with a virus that causes vampirism in an attempt to cure himself of a fatal disease, Morbius looks like it’s going to be a uniquely dark entry into the MCU that should make for a seriously entertaining watch. We’re also super-excited that Puerto Rican-Guatemalan actor Adria Arjona and actor Al Madrigal, who is of Mexican descent, are both in the film, and it was directed by Latinx filmmaker Daniel Espinosa, who is from Sweden but of Chilean descent.

Ambulance

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Mexican actress Eiza González stars in the upcoming action flick, Ambulance, alongside Hollywood A-listers Jake Gyllenhaal and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II. The movie is about two brothers who team up for a bank robbery when one becomes desperate to find a way to pay for his wife’s medical bills. Things go awry, and they end up hijacking the ambulance Eiza’s character, Cam, works on. The film is out April 8.

Jurassic World: Dominion

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Mexican American actor Daniella Pineda, who also starred in The Vampire Diaries, will reprise her role as Zia Rodriguez in the Jurassic World franchise in the upcoming film, Jurassic World: Dominion. Plot details haven’t been revealed yet, but Bryce Dallas Howard and Chris Pratt will also reprise their roles. The film is out on June 10.

Shotgun Wedding

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J.Lo is making another appearance on this list with Shotgun Wedding starring Jen and Josh Duhamel (Win a Date with Tad Hamilton!). Clearly feeling comfortable back in her rom-com wheelhouse, J.Lo’s playing with the genre a bit by adding in an action element. The film’s about a couple whose destination is crashed by criminals forcing them to work together to protect their families. The film is out June 29.

Distant 

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Anthony Ramos (In the Heights, Hamilton on Broadway) is setting aside the musicals in 2022, and trying his hand at sci-fi. He’ll star in the film sci-fi action flick, Distant about an asteroid miner who survives a crash landing on an alien planet and must set out alone across strange and dangerous terrain to find the only other survive. The film is out September 16.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Part One) 

We’re finally getting another Miles Morales movie! While a Latinx actor does not voice the young, animated, Afro-Boricua spiderman (Shameik Moore does), Guatemalan-American actor and Dune star, Oscar Isaac, voices one of the film’s main characters, Miguel O’Hara. The sequel will see Miles Morales travel across the multiverse to join his fellow spider-people in taking down a powerful villain.The film is out October 7.

Batgirl

Shortly after her acting debut in In The Heights, bachata singer Leslie Grace was cast as the lead in the upcoming Batgirl movie. For now, Warner Bros. is keeping details about the film under wraps but we know it’s going to star big-name actors J.K. Simmons, Michael Keaton (who previously played Batman) and Brendan Fraser in supporting roles. An exact release date has not been announced, but it is expected to come out this year. 

Avatar 2

Zoe Saldana will once again play one of her most well-known characters, Neytiri, in Avatar 2. More than a dozen years after the original movie came out, the sequel is set to release on December 16, 2022. In it, Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) along Neytiri and the Navi must form an alliance to protect their beloved planet of Pandora from a returning threat. The sequel is set to release on December 16.

Charmed Season 4

One of our favorite things about CW’s Charmed reboot is that the main characters are Puerto Rican. Of the three actors who star in the witchy series, Melonie Diaz is the only one who is actually Puerto Rican, but Valerie Cruz, the actor who plays their mother, is Cuban-American and in Season 3, transgender actor Mareya Salazar, who is of Venezuelan descent, joined the cast as their cousin. The fourth season premieres in March.

The Last of Us

Coming to HBO some time later this year, the brand-new series, The Last of Us, starring Chilean-American actor Pedro Pascal, is a post-apocalyptic series based on the popular video game of the same name. It’s about a smuggler who must keep his teenage companion safe on a cross-country trek. Mexican-American actor, Gabriel Luna, who is best known for his role on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., also stars in the series.

Star Wars: Andor

Diego Luna nabbed the coveted lead role in the latest Star Wars TV series, Star Wars: Andor, which is set to premiere on Disney+ some time in the latter half of the year. The series is being described as prequel to Star Wars: Rogue One, and tells the story of Cassian Andor during the early days of the Rebellion.

Wednesday

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Jenna Ortega will also star in the upcoming TV series, Wednesday, based on the Addams Family story by Charles Addams. Jenna will play the lead in the show, which is a collaboration between Netflix and iconic filmmaker, Tim Burton, and takes place during Wednesday Addams’ school years as she’s learning to tap into her psychic abilities.

How I Met Your Father

The standalone sequel to How I Met Your Mother stars Hilary Duff (A Cinderella Story) as Sophie and Francia Raisa (Grown-ish) as her best friend and roommate, Valentina. Raisa, who is of Mexican and Honduran descent, plays an assistant stylist who falls for a former British royal and is prone to impulsive decisions. How I Met Your Father premiered on Hulu in  mid-January and two episodes are currently available – peep Valentina wearing a Selena tee on the first episode.

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