Robert & Rebecca Rodriguez Developing Female-Fronted ‘Zorro’ at The CW

The famous masked vigilante Zorro is getting a make-over in a new, gender-swapped reimagining for The CW.

According to Deadline, the series comes from filmmaker Robert Rodriguez (Sin City), writer-director Rebecca Rodriguez (Doom Patrol), producer-director Sean Tretta (Mayans M.C.), and Propagate’s Ben Silverman and Howard T. Owens. CBS studios is set to produce.

The project, which was originally in development at NBC, is written by the Rodriguez siblings and Tretta (showrunner) and follows a young Latino woman looking for vengeance for her father’s murder. In her mission, she joins a secret society and takes on the outlaw persona of Zorro.

Zorro with a female protagonist has been an idea in the works for several years at this point. According to Deadline, it was one of Propagate’s first projects under its first-look deal with CBS Studios. NBC previously considered the series, first in 2019, with a version written by Magnum P.I. exec producer Alfredo Barrios Jr., and later the Rodriguezs’ penned effort in 2020-21.

Robert Rodriguez has a long history with the masked avenger, as he was set to direct the Antonio Banderas-starring 1998 film The Mask of Zorro. However, he eventually left the project following a budget dispute. Robert is currently an exec producer-director on Disney+’s The Book of Boba Fett. His other credits include From Dusk Till Dawn, the original movie and its TV series adaptation, Spy Kids, Machete, and We Can Be Heroes.

Rebecca Rodriguez has recently directed episodes of HBO Max’s Doom Patrol, TNT drama Snowpiercer, NBC sci-fi series Debris, and Showtime’s The Chi. She also previously worked alongside her brother when she directed an episode of From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series.

The CW isn’t the only network developing a reimagined Zorro series. In December, it was revealed that Disney Branded Television is working on a new Zorro series starring Wilmer Valderrama (NCIS) in the title role.

Zorro, TBA, The CW