Zorro lives: the masked and seductive hero returns

Paramount+ and France Télévisions recently announced a new Zorro series, starring actor Jean Dujardin. The French artist won the Oscar for best actor for the acclaimed film “The Artist” in 2012.

The series will arrive later this year on the Paramount+ streaming platform, before being broadcast on French TV. The story is set in 1821 and features Don Diego de la Vega/Zorro as the mayor of Los Angeles. The town faces financial problems due to a local businessman.

Having not worn the Zorro costume for 20 years, he decides to revive his alter ego, but needs to hide his secret identity from his wife, which causes tension in their marriage.

Dujardin was born and raised in Rueil-Malmaison, Île-de-France, on the outskirts of Paris. He worked for his parents in a construction company. And he began to dream of an acting career already during his compulsory military service.

Created by Benjamin Charbit and Noé Debré, the series will have eight episodes. Dujardin is one of the producers. The series is written by Charbit, Debré and Emmanuel Poulain-Arnaud; and directed by Jean-Baptiste Saurel and Emilie Noblet.

In addition to Dujardin, the cast of Zorro includes Audrey Dana (Crimes), Salvatore Ficarra (The Beginning of Christmas), André Dussollier (Eternal Love), Eric Elmosnino (The Beliér Family) and Grégory Gadebois (The Officer and the indicator light).

After a break from films starring Antonio Banderas, the character of Zorro has returned to gain space on the scene. A Spanish production starring Miguel Bernardeau (Elite) recently arrived on Prime Video, while a new film with star Gael García Bernal is in production.

The character, who always wears a hat, mask, cloak and sword, is a skilled and charming swordsman. It was created by Johnston McCulley in the book “The Curse of Capistrano” in 1919. One of his characteristics is to leave the letter Z as a mark, made with the sword wherever he passes. She looks at other actors who also acted in Zorro, in cinema or on TV.

DOUGLAS FAIBANKS – He played the masked man in “Mark of Zorro”, a 1920 film, directed by Fred Niblo and Theodore Reed. The actor born in California on 05/23/1883 was very popular in silent cinema.

TYRONE POWER – He was the protagonist of “The Mark of Zorro”, directed in 1940 by Rouben Mamoulian. Born 5/5/1914 in Ohio, Tyrone Power had a successful career between the 1930s and 1950s.

GUY WILLIAMS – Pseudonym of Armando Joseph Catalano, born in New York on 01.14.1924, the actor, who became a model for advertising photos of toothpaste and cigarettes, starred in Zorro both at the cinema and on television in the 1950s.

In the series shown between 1957 and 1959, produced by the Walt Disney studios, in addition to the salary, the actor also received 2.5% of the profits. He became so famous as Zorro that he even attended events, including Disneyland, as the character.

ALAIN DELON – The French actor, born on 8/11/1935 and considered one of the most beautiful in cinema, played the masked man in “The Mark of Zorro”, in 1974. Alain Delon played the famous character of Zorro. The film directed by Duccio Tessari was recorded in Spain and most of the crew was Italian. The long sword fight at the end of the film was inspired by Scaramouche (1952).

Alain Fabien Maurice Marcel Delon became internationally known with the film The Sun for Witness, becoming one of Europe’s most important actors and sex symbols in the 1960s and 1970s.

DUNCAN REGEHR – Born 5/12/1952, was a Canadian multimedia artist who, in addition to being an actor, was a figure skater. Regehr played the lead character Zorro in the Family Channel television series based on Johnston McCulley’s classic hero.

ANTONIO BANDERAS – The Spanish actor, born on 8/10/1960 in Malaga, was the protagonist of “The Mask of Zorro”, directed by the New Zealander Martin Campbell, in 1998. The film starred Anthony Hopkins and Catherine Zeta-Jones cast and was nominated for an Oscar for Best Editing and Best Sound Mixing.

Banderas was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Actor for playing the hero seductively, with memorable scenes alongside Catherine Zeta-Jones.

Banderas’ success had a sequel: The Legend of Zorro, in 2005. The swashbuckling adventure was directed by Martin Campbell. The story is set in the Mexican city of San Mateo, in modern-day California, which was in the process of being annexed by the United States at the time.

Seductive, Banderas is also seen in fashion and beauty advertising. He has a perfume brand named after him and is a producer, director and voice actor.

FRANK ANGELLA – Born on 1/1/1938, the American actor played the heroic swordsman in “The Mark of Zorro” in 1974. The made-for-television film was inspired by the 1940 production starring Tyrone Power.

MIGUEL BERNARDEAU – In January 2024, a new series based on Zorro arrived on Prime Video. Born on 12/12/1996 in Valencia, Spain, Miguel studied dramatic arts in the United States. He started his career in 2016.

Zorro’s story begins when the character seeks justice for the murder of his father. He then returns to California to find out what happened and enact his revenge.