Development In 1965, screenwriter
Dalton Trumbo finished a 205-page draft of a screenplay entitled
Montezuma, with a story centered around the complicated relationship between Spanish conquistador
Hernán Cortés and Aztec leader
Moctezuma II. The film was written with intent of having
Martin Ritt direct and
Kirk Douglas play the role of Cortés. The production ultimately never came together. In 2014, it was reported that
Steven Spielberg was considering directing
Montezuma from a screenplay written by
Steven Zaillian, based on the original script by Trumbo. It was further reported that the film might be retitled
Cortes, as the new screenplay featured him as the main character. On October 3, 2019, it was reported that
Ciro Guerra and Cristina Gallegos would direct the miniseries, while
Gael García Bernal and
Diego Luna would executive produce.
Casting In February 2020, it was announced that Tenoch Huerta would play Moctezuma II, Aztec Emperor, with Yoshira Escárrega in the role of Malintzin or Marina, the strategic partner, translator and consort of Hernán Cortés. Ammar Aldieri was cast as Tapeia.
Production The miniseries was two weeks into filming in Mexico City in March 2020, when production was suspended due to the
COVID-19 pandemic. It was being filmed in Spanish, Nahuatl and Chontal Mayan, from scripts translated by David Bowles. In September 2020, Amazon withdrew from its partnership with Amblin on the miniseries, scrapping the project, due to complications from the still-ongoing pandemic. ==References==