Jennifer Lopez signs up for film on Chilean miners

Los Angeles, June 18 (IANS/EFE) Jennifer Lopez is the latest addition to the cast of "The 33", a film based on the story of survival of the miners trapped for more than two months below ground after a mine collapse in northern Chile, The Hollywood Reporter said Monday.

J.Lo joins a cast led by Spanish actor Antonio Banderas, who plays Mario Sepulveda, the charismatic miner who earned the nickname "Super Mario" during the saga.

Filming will begin this fall in Chile under the direction of Patricia Riggen.

Also making up part of the cast will be Martin Sheen and Brazil's Rodrigo Santoro.

The script, written by Mikko Alanne and Jose Rivera, revolves around the incidents that took place in the San Jose mine, where the miners spent 70 days some 700 meters underground before their rescue in October 2010.

The script was written in collaboration with the miners themselves and includes details never before made public about their first 17 days below ground, before they managed to contact the surface.

Simultaneously with the filming, journalist and author Hector Tobar is currently writing the official book about the miners' story.

--IANS/EFE

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