The Mask of Zorro (1998) on Netflix
PG-1319982h 18mActionAdventureComedy
Don Rafael Montero imprisons Zorro, Don Diego de la Vega, and takes his infant daughter. Twenty years later, the escaped de la Vega trains the bandit Alejandro Murrieta to succeed him.
- Netflix3.6/5
- IMDb6.8/10212,235 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes84%
Trailer
Plot summary
In 1821, Zorro defends the commoners of Alta California against the corrupt governor Don Rafael Montero. Montero discovers that the nobleman Don Diego de la Vega is the man behind the mask, attacks his home, takes his infant daughter and has him imprisoned. Twenty years later, bandits Alejandro and Joaquín Murrieta try to rob a strongbox and are caught by Captain Harrison Love. Alejandro slips away. Montero returns to California with his grown daughter Elena, and de la Vega escapes from prison. He finds the drunk Alejandro, recognizes the medallion he once gave Joaquín, and offers to make him the next Zorro. In a hidden lair beneath the ruins of his family estate, de la Vega puts Alejandro through intense training and tells him that Zorro serves the people.
Cast
- Emiliano Guerraas Boy Crying
- Yolanda Orizagaas Woman Crying
Show all 20 cast
- María Fernández Cruzas Baby Elena de la Vega (as Maria Fernandez Cruz)
- Mónica Fernández Cruzas Baby Elena de la Vega (as Monica Fernandez Cruz)
- Yolanda Orisagaas Woman Crying (as Yolanda Orizaga)
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about The Mask of Zorro (1998)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Alejandro Murrieta, played by Antonio Banderas, is the fictional brother of Joaquin Murrieta, a real Mexican outlaw killed by the California Rangers under Harry Love in 1853; the film moves their clash to 1841. Love's capture of Murrieta's right-hand man Three-Fingered Jack was also real, though he was a Mexican named Manuel Garcia, not an Anglo-American.
- Tom Cruise turned down the role of Zorro because he felt it was not a good idea, and Colombian singer Shakira was initially considered for Elena but declined, citing her limited acting experience and poor English at the time.
SPOILER
In post-production, Steven Spielberg and Martin Campbell decided Diego de la Vega's death in his daughter's arms was too depressing, so a new ending showing Alejandro and Elena married with an infant son was added three months after filming ended.- Sony Pictures sued Fireworks Entertainment, producers of the TV series Queen of Swords, alleging it copied Zorro elements; a judge denied an injunction because the copyrights in the 1919 story The Curse of Capistrano and the 1920 film The Mark of Zorro had lapsed, putting Zorro in the public domain.
- Anthony Hopkins, cast a month before filming began, took the role of Don Diego de la Vega out of enthusiasm for being in an action film. Sean Connery and Raúl Juliá, who died before he could take the part, had also been considered.
- Catherine Zeta-Jones was cast as Elena in November 1996 after Steven Spielberg saw her in the Titanic miniseries and recommended her to Martin Campbell, and Izabella Scorupco, Salma Hayek, Shakira and Jennifer Lopez were among those who screen tested for the part.
- Antonio Banderas trained with Spain's Olympic fencing team for four months, then worked on swordsmanship with Anthony Hopkins and Catherine Zeta-Jones under fight trainer Bob Anderson, 10 hours a day for two months on the film's fight scenes.
- The troubled shoot went $10 million over its budget, and in December customs agents frustrated the producers by holding props, including Zorro's plastic sword, for nine days.
