<div><p>A full month from now, <span><a data-ga="[[&quot;Embedded Url&quot;,&quot;Internal link&quot;,&quot;https://gizmodo.com/madame-web-trailer-sony-spider-man-marvel-spinoff-mcu-1851023740&quot;,{&quot;metric25&quot;:1}]]" href="https://gizmodo.com/madame-web-trailer-sony-spider-man-marvel-spinoff-mcu-1851023740"><em>Madame Web</em></a></span> will be making its way into theaters. Like <span><a data-ga="[[&quot;Embedded Url&quot;,&quot;Internal link&quot;,&quot;https://gizmodo.com/venom-3-sony-marvel-production-resumed-tom-hardy-1851046632&quot;,{&quot;metric25&quot;:1}]]" href="https://gizmodo.com/venom-3-sony-marvel-production-resumed-tom-hardy-1851046632"><em>Venom</em></a></span><em> </em>and <span><a data-ga="[[&quot;Embedded Url&quot;,&quot;Internal link&quot;,&quot;https://gizmodo.com/hot-toys-morbius-price-release-date-pictures-marvel-mcu-1851162284&quot;,{&quot;metric25&quot;:1}]]" href="https://gizmodo.com/hot-toys-morbius-price-release-date-pictures-marvel-mcu-1851162284"><em>Morbius</em></a></span><em> </em>before it, the film is Sony’s bid at making a universe of interconnected Spider-Man movies that don’t feature the hero in question. And in another universe, we’d have one of those movies playing out in theaters this weekend. </p><p>In mid-2022, Sony curiously announced it was working on a movie for <span><a data-ga="[[&quot;Embedded Url&quot;,&quot;Internal link&quot;,&quot;https://gizmodo.com/sony-cinemacon-spider-man-el-muerto-bad-bunny-venom-3-1848841974&quot;,{&quot;metric25&quot;:1}]]" href="https://gizmodo.com/sony-cinemacon-spider-man-el-muerto-bad-bunny-venom-3-1848841974">El Muerto</a></span> that was set to release on January 12, 2024. If you haven’t heard of him, don’t worry, he’s only really shown up in two issues, both of which were back in 2006 . Created by Peter David and Roger Cruz during the former’s <em>Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man </em>run, the mantle belongs to two men: Juan-Carlos Sánchez and his father, Marcus Estrada de la García. Marcus trained Juan-Carlos to become the next El Muerto, wrestlers who wore mystical masks that give them superhuman strength and durability. During the final part of the test, the two are attacked by another supernatural wrestler named El Dorado, who kills Marcus. Juan-Carlos spent the following ten years training to avenge his father and sought out Spider-Man so to beat the hero in a wrestling match and unmask him; the two later teamed up against El Dorado and sent him fleeing. </p><figure contenteditable="false" data-format="png" data-height="720" data-hide="false" data-id="0604444b21fa0893a0258ed736976c1b" data-lightbox="true" data-recommend-id="image://0604444b21fa0893a0258ed736976c1b" data-recommended="false" data-width="1280" draggable="false"><div contenteditable="false" data-hide="false" data-hidecredit="false" data-imagerights="other-license" data-link-reference="" data-link-target="" data-syndicationrights="true"><p><span><div><picture><source data-srcset="https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/0604444b21fa0893a0258ed736976c1b.jpg" media="(max-width: 37.31em)" srcset="R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==" type="image/jpeg"></source><source data-srcset="https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_1315/0604444b21fa0893a0258ed736976c1b.jpg" media="(min-width: 37.37em)" srcset="R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==" type="image/jpeg"></source><img alt="Image for article titled Sony&amp;#39;s El Muerto Movie Should Exist This Weekend" data-alt="Image for article titled Sony&amp;#39;s El Muerto Movie Should Exist This Weekend" data-anim-src="" data-chomp-id="0604444b21fa0893a0258ed736976c1b" data-format="png" data-height="720" data-src="https://i.kinja-img.com/image/upload/c_fit,q_60,w_645/0604444b21fa0893a0258ed736976c1b.jpg" src="R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw=="></img></picture></div></span></p><p><figcaption>Image: Roger Cruz/Marvel Comics</figcaption></p></div><span data-format="png" data-height="720" data-hide="false" data-id="0604444b21fa0893a0258ed736976c1b" data-lightbox="true" data-recommend-id="image://0604444b21fa0893a0258ed736976c1b" data-recommended="false" data-width="1280"></span></figure><p>El Muerto hasn’t been seen since, but Sony’s would-be movie for him had an ace up its sleeve in Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, aka <span><a data-ga="[[&quot;Embedded Url&quot;,&quot;Internal link&quot;,&quot;https://gizmodo.com/bad-bunny-they-both-die-at-the-end-netflix-sci-fi-serie-1849967006&quot;,{&quot;metric25&quot;:1}]]" href="https://gizmodo.com/bad-bunny-they-both-die-at-the-end-netflix-sci-fi-serie-1849967006">Bad Bunny</a></span>. The Puerto Rican rapper has been a professional wrestler since 2021, and he was already starting to branch out into acting with Netflix’s <em>Narcos: Mexico </em>and the then-upcoming action flick <em>Bullet Train</em>.<em> </em>But Sony didn’t have anything on hand for the film beyond Ocasio’s inclusion, not even so much as a title card or director attached. And over a full year after the announcement, the studio pulled the film from <span><a data-ga="[[&quot;Embedded Url&quot;,&quot;Internal link&quot;,&quot;https://gizmodo.com/spider-man-el-muerto-sony-delayed-marvel-bad-bunny-1850562739&quot;,{&quot;metric25&quot;:1}]]" href="https://gizmodo.com/spider-man-el-muerto-sony-delayed-marvel-bad-bunny-1850562739">its release schedule</a></span> entirely, and it’s unclear asto what capacity <em>El Muerto </em>currently exists.<br></br></p><p>It’s a weird series of events, but not entirely abnormal for Sony. Back in 2014, the studio announced it was working on a <span><a data-ga="[[&quot;Embedded Url&quot;,&quot;Internal link&quot;,&quot;https://gizmodo.com/next-up-for-the-spider-man-movieverse-black-cat-and-si-1793543558&quot;,{&quot;metric25&quot;:1}]]" href="https://gizmodo.com/next-up-for-the-spider-man-movieverse-black-cat-and-si-1793543558">Silver Sable/Black Cat</a></span> movie dubbed <span><a data-ga="[[&quot;Embedded Url&quot;,&quot;Internal link&quot;,&quot;https://gizmodo.com/the-spider-man-spinoff-silver-and-black-is-coming-in-fe-1797769723&quot;,{&quot;metric25&quot;:1}]]" href="https://gizmodo.com/the-spider-man-spinoff-silver-and-black-is-coming-in-fe-1797769723"><em>Silver &amp; Black</em></a></span><em> </em>that had <em>The Old Guard’s </em>Gina Prince-Blythewood on hand to direct. That project was then seemingly scrapped to focus on <span><a data-ga="[[&quot;Embedded Url&quot;,&quot;Internal link&quot;,&quot;https://gizmodo.com/sonys-silver-sable-spider-man-spin-off-may-be-back-on-t-1782604148&quot;,{&quot;metric25&quot;:1}]]" href="https://gizmodo.com/sonys-silver-sable-spider-man-spin-off-may-be-back-on-t-1782604148">just Sable</a></span>, and now it’s just apparently full-on dead, ditto an Aunt May movie mentioned in the infamous <span><a data-ga="[[&quot;Embedded Url&quot;,&quot;Internal link&quot;,&quot;https://gizmodo.com/sony-is-making-some-kind-of-superheroine-starring-spide-1615845558&quot;,{&quot;metric25&quot;:1}]]" href="https://gizmodo.com/sony-is-making-some-kind-of-superheroine-starring-spide-1615845558">Sony email hack</a></span>. Sony’s plans for its <span><a data-ga="[[&quot;Embedded Url&quot;,&quot;Internal link&quot;,&quot;https://gizmodo.com/spumc-1843200536&quot;,{&quot;metric25&quot;:1}]]" href="https://gizmodo.com/spumc-1843200536">terribly-named universe</a></span> of Spider-Man-adjacent media is all over the place, and even with a <em>Venom </em>trilogy set to close this year and two different Spider-Man characters getting their own TV shows, it remains unclear which of these will actually, truly happen. </p><p>Where would we be if the <em>El Muerto </em>had come out as intended? It’s hard to say; wrestling is very popular, and Bad Bunny is a pretty good artist, but the character’s concept feels like a hard sell. Big-budget wrestling movies don’t really get made these days, and wrestlers like <span><a data-ga="[[&quot;Embedded Url&quot;,&quot;Internal link&quot;,&quot;https://gizmodo.com/dwayne-johnson-hobbs-movie-fast-and-furious-vin-diesel-1850496825&quot;,{&quot;metric25&quot;:1}]]" href="https://gizmodo.com/dwayne-johnson-hobbs-movie-fast-and-furious-vin-diesel-1850496825">Dwayne Johnson</a></span>, <span><a data-ga="[[&quot;Embedded Url&quot;,&quot;Internal link&quot;,&quot;https://gizmodo.com/peacemakers-opening-credits-should-win-the-best-picture-1848361416&quot;,{&quot;metric25&quot;:1}]]" href="https://gizmodo.com/peacemakers-opening-credits-should-win-the-best-picture-1848361416">John Cena</a></span>, and <span><a data-ga="[[&quot;Embedded Url&quot;,&quot;External link&quot;,&quot;https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqF3VTv0cqU&quot;,{&quot;metric25&quot;:1}]]" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqF3VTv0cqU" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Florence Pugh</a></span> have taken more organic swings into the superhero space. More importantly, Sony’s seemingly content with its superhero films feeling like they’re from two decades ago and just doing whatever the hell they want. But <em>Morbius </em>was a clear indicator that style of filmmaking can only go so far, so maybe it’s for the best that Sony either benched <em>El Muerto </em>until it’s sure the film’s ready to step into the ring or told it to hit the showers.</p><hr></hr><p>  <em>Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest </em><span><a data-ga="[[&quot;Embedded Url&quot;,&quot;Internal link&quot;,&quot;https://gizmodo.com/marvel-release-dates-when-to-see-upcoming-mcu-movies-1848196856&quot;,{&quot;metric25&quot;:1}]]" href="https://gizmodo.com/marvel-release-dates-when-to-see-upcoming-mcu-movies-1848196856"><em>Marvel</em></a></span><em>, </em><span><a data-ga="[[&quot;Embedded Url&quot;,&quot;Internal link&quot;,&quot;https://gizmodo.com/star-wars-movies-tv-shows-release-dates-disney-1848494806&quot;,{&quot;metric25&quot;:1}]]" href="https://gizmodo.com/star-wars-movies-tv-shows-release-dates-disney-1848494806">Star Wars</a></span>, and <span><a data-ga="[[&quot;Embedded Url&quot;,&quot;Internal link&quot;,&quot;https://gizmodo.com/star-trek-release-dates-where-to-stream-picard-discover-1848839650&quot;,{&quot;metric25&quot;:1}]]" href="https://gizmodo.com/star-trek-release-dates-where-to-stream-picard-discover-1848839650">Star Trek</a></span><em> releases, what’s next for the </em><span><a data-ga="[[&quot;Embedded Url&quot;,&quot;Internal link&quot;,&quot;https://gizmodo.com/warner-bros-dc-release-dates-hbo-max-cast-details-1848354161&quot;,{&quot;metric25&quot;:1}]]" href="https://gizmodo.com/warner-bros-dc-release-dates-hbo-max-cast-details-1848354161"><em>DC Universe on film and TV</em></a></span><em>, and everything you need to know about the future of </em><span><a data-ga="[[&quot;Embedded Url&quot;,&quot;Internal link&quot;,&quot;https://gizmodo.com/doctor-who-release-dates-streaming-ncuti-gatwa-rtd-1849745140&quot;,{&quot;metric25&quot;:1}]]" href="https://gizmodo.com/doctor-who-release-dates-streaming-ncuti-gatwa-rtd-1849745140">Doctor Who</a></span><em>.</em></p></div>