Diego Boneta confirms Al Pacino plays the CIA official intent on Killing Castro ahead of TIFF premiere

Directed by Eif Rivera, Killing Castro is based on true events. “Harlem, 1960. The Hotel Theresa becomes an unexpected site of political intrigue and surveillance when activist Malcolm X invites Fidel Castro to stay there, among the people, ahead of his imperative UN address,” reads a synopsis for the movie. “Starring a stellar ensemble cast featuring Al Pacino, competing bumbling government factions, motivated assassins, and even the Mafia, look for any opportunity to eliminate this man and diminish his growing movement. As the stakes get higher, it becomes increasingly clear: one person can make the difference in a resistance, and history.”

In addition to Boneta and Pacino, Killing Castro stars Kendrick Samson as Malcolm X as well as Xolo Maridueña, KiKi Layne, Alexander Ludwig, Logan Marshall-Green, and Ron Livingston. Boneta tells EW he spent two years preparing for the role, including extensive research and bulking up physically. Oscar-winning makeup artist Bill Corso (with whom Boneta worked on Luis Miguel) assisted on the shoot, providing a prosthetic nose to help capture Castro’s distinctive look. The role was “by far the hardest acting challenge in my entire career,” Boneta concedes. “Fidel, as you know, is an extremely controversial figure. He’d never really been played as a lead role in a story, and just the social responsibility of playing such a controversial figure, and if not the most famous Latin figure in modern history, I took that very seriously.” Killing Castro does not yet have a release date, but premieres Friday at the Toronto International Film Festival. You can check out the first look photos here.