It seems that one of the many Sony Spider-Man universe projects has hit a bit of a snag, beyond all the striking that has ground Hollywood to a halt. El Muerto, the much-delayed Spider-Man spinoff, has officially lost its lead actor.

Bad Bunny has confirmed that he will no longer be starring in the project. During an interview with Vanity Fair, the Puerto Rican singer was asked about updates for El Muerto. "I don't know what to say," the rapper-turned-wrestler reportedly said, describing the situation as "delicate."

Sujeylee Solá, the singer's publicist, initially did not want Bad Bunny to answer the question, most likely for legal reasons. Solá did eventually say, "Obviously, it's out." which implicitly confirmed that the actor's non-answer referred to his departure from the project.

While Bad Bunny's first leading role is no longer happening, he is not yet done with acting. The singer revealed that he isn't very much into action movies but would like to try out other movie genres - though he'd likely have to wait before another project presents itself.

"As a movie consumer myself, I'm not one to watch a lot of action movies," he shared. "I'd even say it's my least favorite genre. I would really like to play other kinds of things, like a little bit more drama, romance too, or comedy… [maybe] a history movie with a little action in it."

Sony announced El Muerto during its presentation at CinemaCon 2022. The movie follows the story of Marcus Estrada de la García, a.k.a. El Muerto, a wrestler who wears a mystical mask that grants him superpowers. Sony Pictures Entertainment Motion Picture Group President Sanford Panitch described Bad Bunny as a "perfect casting" for the titular character.

Scheduling issues reportedly caused the icing of the El Muerto project. Filming for the movie was originally scheduled to start in August 2023 with Jonás Cuarón directing the superhero flick. However, the ongoing Writers Guild of America strike threw a monkey wrench in the schedule, causing the production to be paused.

According to reports, the script written by Blue Beetle scribe Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer needed a bit of tweaking which could not be done until after the conclusion of the strike. One other factor for Sony removing the film from its release calendar was Bad Bunny's touring schedule.

The studio had difficulty finding time to shoot the movie with the singer's busy schedule. We do not know what Sony's plans are for the film moving forward. The studio may revive the project at a later date when the Hollywood strikes have been settled or it may scrap the project entirely.

With El Muerto on the backburner, Sony's next feature film for its Spider-Man universe will be Madame Web which is slated for release on February 14, 2024. Venom 3 and Kraven the Hunter will follow in the summer of 2024. Sony is also working on Silk: Spider Society and an untitled Spider-Man Noir series.