Benicio del Toro is set to play a villain in ‘Dora the Explorer’.
The 51-year-old actor will voice the character of Swiper, the thieving fox, in the upcoming live action adaptation of the Nickelodeon TV series.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Benicio will join alongside Isabela Moner, who will play the titular character, Michael Pena, as her father Cole ‘Papi’ Márquez and Eva Longoria, as her mother Elena ‘Mami’ Márquez.
‘Dora the Explorer’ will see the youngster’s parents in danger as she leads her cousin Diego, her monkey friend Boots, and a group of teens "on a Goonies-esque adventure to save her parents and solve the impossible mystery behind a lost Inca civilisation."
‘Dora the Explorer’ is a children’s television show which first aired in 2000 and is based around the adventures of the titular Spanish-speaking girl, her monkey Boots, her backpack and other animated friends.
In each episode, Dora goes on an adventure in an animated world set inside a computer and asks for viewers’ help in solving a puzzle or mystery she faced, teaching children both basic Spanish and puzzle solving skills.
Michael Bay’s Platinum Dunes label and his partners Andrew Form and Brad Fuller were initially attached to produce but they are no longer involved.
James Bobin will direct the film from a script penned by Danielle Sanchez-Wittel and Nicholas Stoller.
Although the TV series focused on a young Dora, the live-action movie will centre around the titular character as a teenager who moves to the city to live with her cousin Diego, who also had his own spin-off show ‘Go Diego Go’.
Paramount Pictures are looking to distribute the movie, as the studio is devoted to creating films from the Viacom brands including Nickelodeon – on which ‘Dora the Explorer’ aired – MTV, Comedy Central and BET.
‘Dora the Explorer’ ran for 14 years and was geared towards the younger viewers, with the franchise also branching out into dolls and video games.
‘Dora the Explorer’ is set to hit cinema screens in 2019.
Benicio del Toro to star in Dora the Explorer
